Black Ink--Bible page/Text
Blue Ink--Understand/Pray
Genesis 6 -- 50
"Continued to live 782 years. Meanwhile he became father to sons and daughters. So all the days of Methuselah amounted to 969 years and he died. And Lamech lived on for 182 years. Then he became father to a son. And he proceeded to call his name Noah, saying -- "This one will bring us comfort from our work and from the pain of our hands resulting from the ground which God has cursed." And after fathering Noah Lamech continued to live on for 595 years. Meanwhile he became father to sons and daughters. So all the days of Lamech amounted to 777 years and he died. And Noah got to be 500 years old. After that Noah became father to Shem, Ham and Japheth. 6 Now it came about that when men started to grow in numbers on the surface of the ground and daughters were born to them, then the sons of the true God began to notice the daughters of men, that they were good looking, and they went taking wives for themselves, namely, all whom they chose. After that God said -- "My spirit shall not act toward man indefinitely in that he is also flesh. Accordingly his days shall amount to 120 years." The Nephilim (giants, larger and stronger beings) proved to be in the earth in those days, and also afterward that, when the sons of true God continued to have relations with the daughters of man and they bore sons to them, they were the mighty ones who were of old, the men of fame. Consequently, God saw that the badness of man was abundant in the earth and every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only bad all the time. And God felt regrets that he had made men in the earth, and felt hurt in his heart. So the God said -- "I am going to wipe men whom I have created off the surface of the ground, from man to domestic animal, to moving animal and to flying creature of the heavens, because I do regret I have made them. But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord. This is history of Noah. Noah was righteous man. He proved himself faultless among his contemporaries. Noah walked with the true God. In time Noah became father to 3 sons, Shem, Ham and Japheth. And the earth came to be ruined in the sight of the true God and the earth became filled with violence. So God saw the earth and, look! it was ruined, because all flesh had ruined its way on the earth. After that God said to Noah -- "The end of all flesh has come before me, because the earth is full of violence and as a result of them -- and here I am bringing them to ruin together with the earth. Make for yourself an ark out of wood of a resinous tree. You will make compartments in the ark, and you must cover it inside and outside with tar. And this is how you will make it -- 300 cubits (450 feet) length of the ark, and 50 cubits (75 feet) its width, and 30 cubits (45 feet) its height. You will make a tsohar (roof or window) for the ark, and you will complete it to the extent of a cubit (18 inches) upward, and the entrance of the ark you will put in its side -- you will make it with a lower story, a 2nd story and a 3rd story.
"And as for me, here I am bringing the deluge (flood) of waters upon the earth to bring to ruin all flesh in which the force of life is active from under the heavens. Everything that is in the earth will expire (die). And I do establish my covenant (agreement, relationship) with you -- and you must go into the ark, you and your sons and your wife and your sons' wives with you. And of every living creature of every sort of flesh, 2 of each, you will bring into the ark to preserve with you. Male and female they will be. Of the flying creatures according to the their kinds and of the domestic animals according to their kinds, of all moving animals of the ground according to their kinds, 2 of each will go in there to you to preserve them alive. And as for you, take for yourself every sort of food that is eaten, you must gather it to yourself, and it must serve as food for you and for them." And Noah proceeded to do according to all that God had commanded him. He did just so.
7 After that God said to Noah-- "Go, you and all your household, into the ark, because you are the one I have seen to be righteous before me among this generation. Of every clean beast you must take to yourself by 7s, the sire and its mate (males and its mates ) -- and of every beast that is not clean just 2, the sire and its mate, also the flying creatures of heavens by 7s, male and female, to preserve offspring alive on the surface of the entire earth. For in just 7 days more I am making it rain upon the earth 40 days and 40 nights -- and I will wipe off every existing thing that I have made off the surface of the ground." And Noah proceeded to do according to all that God had commanded him. And Noah was 600 years old when the deluge of waters occurred on the earth. So Noah went in, and his sons and his wife and his sons' wives with him, into the ark ahead of the waters of the deluge. Of every clean beast and of every beast that is not clean and of the flying creatures and everything that moves on the ground, they went in by 2s to Noah inside the ark, male and female, just as God/Lord commanded Noah. And 7 days later it turned out that the waters of the deluge came upon the earth. In the 600th year of Noah's life, in the 2nd month, on the 17th day of the month, on this day all the springs of the vast watery deep were broken open and the floodgates of the heavens were opened. And the downpour upon the earth went on for 40 days and 40 nights. On this very day Noah went in, and Shem and Ham and Japheth, Noah's sons, and the wife of Noah and the 3 wives of his sons with him, into the ark -- they and every wild beast according to its kind, and every domestic animal of its kind, and every moving animal that moves on the earth according to its kind and every flying creature accroding to its kind, very bird, every winged creature. And they kept going into Noah inside the ark, 2 by 2, of every sort of flesh in which the force of life was active. And those going in, male and female of every sort of flesh, went in, just as God commanded him. And the waters became
overwhelming and kept increasing greatly upon the earth, but the ark kept going on the surface of the waters. And the waters overwhelmed the earth so greatly that all the tall mountains that were under the whole heavens came to be covered. Up to 15 cubits (22 1/2 feet) the waters overwhelmed them and the mountains became covered. So all flesh that was moving upon the earth expired, among the flying creatures and among the domestic animals and among the wild beasts and among all the swarms that were swarming upon the earth, and all mankind. Everything in which the breath of the force of life was active in its nostrils, namely, all that were on the dry ground, died. Thus he wiped out every existing thing that was on the surface of ground, from man to beast, to moving animal and to flying creature of the heavens, and they were wiped off the earth, and only Noah and those who were with him in the ark kept on surviving. And the waters continued overwhelming the earth a 150 days. overwhelming and kept increasing greatly upon the eaeth, but the ark kept going on the surface of the waters. And the waters overwhelmed the earth so greatly that all the tall mountains that were under the whole heavens came to be covered. Up to 15 cubits (22 1/2 feet) the waters overwhelmed them and the mountains became covered. So all flesh that was moving upon the earth expired, among the flying creatures and among the domestic animals and among the wild beasts and among all the swarms that were swarming upon the earth, and all mankind. Everything in which the breath of the force of life was active in its nostrils, namely, all that were on the dry ground, died. Thus he wiped out every existing thing that was on the surface of ground, from man to beast, to moving animal and to flying creature of the heavens, and they were wiped off the earth, and only Noah and those who were with him in the ark kept on surviving. And the waters continued overwhelming the earth a 150 days. 8 After that God remembered Noah and every wild beasts and every domestic animal that was with him in the ark, and God caused a wind to pass over the earth, and the waters began to subside. And the springs of the watery deep and the flood gates of heavens became stopped up, so the downpour from the heavens was restrained. And the waters began receding from off the earth, prgressviely receding and at the end of a 150 days the waters were lacking. And in the 7th month, on the 7th day of the month, the ark came to rest on the mountains of Aarat. And the waters kept on progressively lessening until the 10th month. in the 10th month, on the 1st of the month, the tops of the mountains appeared. So it occurred that at the end of 40 days Noah proceeded to open the window of the ark that he had made. After that he sent out a raven, and it continued flying outdoors, going and returning, until the waters dried off the earth. Later he sent out from him a dove to see whether the waters had abated from the surface of the ground. And the dove did not find any resting-place for the sole of its foot, and so it returned to him into the ark because the waters were yet upon the surface of the whole earth. At that he put his hand out and took it and brought it to himself inside the ark. And he went on waiting still another 7 days, and once again he sent out the dove from the ark. Later on the dove came to him about the time of evening and, look! there was an olive leaf freshly plucked in its bill, and so Noah got to know that the waters had abated from the earth. And he went on waiting still another 7 days. Then he sent out the dove, but it did not come back again to him anymore. Now in the 601st year, in the 1st month, on the 1st day of the month, it came about that the waters had drained from off the earth -- and Noah proceeded to remove the covering of the ark and to look, and here the surface of the ground had drained dry. And in the 2nd month, on the 27th day of the month, the earth had dried off. God now spoke to Noah, saying -- "Go out of the ark, you and your wife and your sons and yours sons' wives with you. Every living creature that is
with you every sort of flesh, among the flying creatures and among the beasts and among all the moving animals that move upon the earth, bring out with you, as they swarm in the earth and be fruitful and become many upon the earth." At that Noah went out, and also his sons and his wife and sons' wives with him. Every living creature, every moving animal and every flying creature, everything that moves on the earth, according to their families they went out of the ark. And Noah began to build an altar to God and to take some of all the clean beasts and of all the clean flying creatures and to offer burnt offerings upon the altar. And God began to smell a restful odor, and so God said in his heart -- "Never again, shall I call down evil upon the ground on man's account, because the inclination of heart of man is bad from his youth up -- and never again shall I deal every living thing a blow just as I have done. For all the days the earth continues, seed sowing and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night, will never cease." 9 And God went on to bless Noah and his sons and say to them -- "Be fruitful and become many and fill the earth. And a fear of you and a terror of you will continue upon every living creature of the earth and upon every flying creature of the heavens, upon everything that goes moving on the ground, and upon all the fishes of the sea. Into your hand they are now given. Every moving animal that is alive may serve as food for you. As in the case of green vegetation, I do give it all to you. Only flesh with its soul --its blood -- you must not eat. And, besides that, your blood of your souls shall I ask back. From the hand of every living creature shall I ask it back -- and from the hand of man, from the hand of each one who is his brother, shall I ask back the soul of man. Anyone shedding man's blood, by man will his own blood be shed, for in God's image HE made man. And as for you men, be fruitful and become many, make the earth swarm with you and become many in it." And God went on to say to Noah and his sons -- "As for me, here I am establishing my covenant with you men and with your offspring after you, and with every living soul that is with you, and among fowls, among beasts and among all living creatures of the earth with you, from all those going out of the ark to every living creature of the earth. Yes, I do establish my covenant with you --No more will all flesh be cut off by waters of a deluge, and no more will there occur a deluge to bring the earth to ruin." And God added -- "This is the sign of the covenant that I am giving between me and you and every living soul that is with you, for the generations to time indefinite. My rainbow I do give in the cloud, and it must serve as a sign of the covenant between me and the earth. And it shall occur when I am bring a cloud over the earth, the rainbow will certainly appear in the cloud. And I shall certainly remember my covenant which is between me and you and every living soul among all flesh -- and no more will the waters become a deluge go bring all flesh to ruin. And the rainbow must occur
in the cloud, and I shall certainly see it to remember the covenant to time indefinite between God and every living soul among all flesh that is upon the earth." And God repeated to Noah -- "This is the sign of the covenant that I do establish between me and all flesh that is upon the earth." And Noah's sons who came out the ark were Shem and Ham and Japheth. Later Ham was the father of Canaan. These 3 were Noah's sons, and from these was all the earth's population spread abroad. Now Noah started off as a farmer and proceeded to plant a vineyard. And he began drinking of the wine and became intoxicated, and so he uncovered himself in the midst of his tent. Later Ham the father of Canaan saw his father's nakedness and went telling it to his 2 brothers outside. At that Shem and Japheth took a mantle and put it upon both their shoulders and walked in backwards. Thus they covered their father's nakedness, while their faces were turned away, and they did not see their father's nakedness. Finally Noah awoke from his wine and got to know what his youngest son had done to him. At this he said -- "Curse be Canaan. Let him become the lowest slave to his brothers." And he added -- "Bless be God, Shem's God, and let Canaan become a slave to him. Let God grant ample space to Japheth, And let him reside in the tents of Shem. Let Canaan become a slave to him also. And Noah continued to live 350 years after the deluge. So all the days of Noah amounted to 950 years old and then he died.
10 And this is the history of Noah's sons, Shem, Ham and Japheth. Now sons began to be born to them after the deluge. The sons of Japheth were Gomer and Magog and Madai and Javan and Tubal and Meshech and Tiras. And Sons of Gomer were Ashkenaz, Riphath and Togar-mah. And sons of Javan were Elishah, Tarshish, Kittim and Dodanim. From these population of the isles of the nations was spread about in their lands, each according to its tongue, according to their families by their nations. And the sons of Ham were Cush, Mizraim and Put and Canaan. And the sons of Cush were Seba and Havilah and Sabtah and Raamah and Sabteca. And the sons of Raamah were Sheba and Dedan. And Cush became father to Nimrod. He made the start in becoming a mighty one in the earth. He displayed himself a mighty hunter in opposition to God. That is why there is a saying -- "Just like Nimrod, a mighty hunter in opposition to God" And beginning of his kingdom came to be Babel, Erech, Accad and Calneh, in the land of Shinar. Out of that land he went into Assyria and set himself to building Nineveh
"Love God"
and Rehoboth-Ir and Calah and Resen between and Nineveh and Calah--this is the great city. Mizraim became father to Ludim and Anamim and Lehabim and Naphtuhim and Pathrusim and Casluhim (from among whom the Philistines went forth) and Caphtorim. And Canaan became father to Sidon his firstborn and Heth and the Jebusite and the Amorite and the Girgashite, and the Hivite and the Arkite and the Sinite and the Arvadite, and the Zemarite and the Hamathite, and afterward the families of Canaan were scattered. So the boundary of Canaanite came to be from Sidon to Gerar near Gaza to far as Sodom and Gomorrah and Admah and Zeboiim, near Lasha. These were the sons of Ham according to their families, according to their tongues, in their lands, by their nations. And to Shem, the forefather of all the sons of Eber, the brother of Japheth the oldest, there was also progeny born. The sons of Shem were Elam, Asshur, Arpachshad and Lud and Aram. And the sons of Aram were Uz and Hul and Gether and Mash. And Arpachshad was father of Shelah, and Shelah became father of Eber. And Eber there were 2 sons born. The name of one was Peleg, because in his days, the earth was divided --and the name of his brother was Joktan. And Joktan became father to Almodad and Sheleph and Hazarmaveth and Jerah and Hadoram and Uzal and Diklah and Obal and Abimael and Sheba Ophir and Havilah and Jobab -- all these were the sons of Joktan. And their place of dwelling came to extend from Mesha as far as Sephar, the mountainous region in the East. These were the sons of Shem according to their families, according to their tongues, in their lands, according to their nations. These were the families of sons Noah according to their descents, by their nations were spread about in the earth after the deluge.
11 Now all the earth continued to be one language and of one set of words. And it came about that in their journeying eastward they eventually discovered a valley plain in the land of Shinar, and they took up dwelling there. And they began to say, each one to the other -- "Come on! Let us make bricks and bake them with a burning process" So brick served as stone for them, but bitumen served as mortar for them. They now said -- "Come on! Let us build ourselves a city and also a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a celebrated name for ourselves, for fear we may be scattered all over the surface of the earth." God proceeded to go down to see the city and the tower and the sons of men had built. After that God said -- "Look! They are one people and there is one language what they start to do. Why, now there is nothing that they may have in mind to do that will be unattainable for them. Come now! Let us go down and there confuse language that they
may not listen to one another's language." Accordingly Jehovah scattered them from there all over all the surface of the earth, and they gradually left building the city. This is why its name was called Babel, because there God had confused the language of all the earth, and God had scattered them from there over all the surface of the earth. This is history of Shem -- Shem was a 100 years old when he became father to Arpachshad Shem continued to live 500 years. Meanwhile he became father to sons and daughters. And Arpachshad lived 35 years. Then he became father to Shelah. And after his fathering Shelah Arpachshad continued to live 403 years. Meanwhile he became father to sons and daughters. And Shelah lived 30 years. Then he became father to Eber. And after his fathering Eber Shelah continued to live 403 years. Meanwhile he became father to sons and daughters. And Eber lived on for 34 years. Then he became father to Peleg. and after fathering Peleg Eber continued to live 430 years. Meanwhile he became father to sons and daughters. And Peleg lived on for 30 years. live. Then he became father to Reu. And after his fathering Reu Peleg continued to live 209 years. Meanwhile he became father to sons and daughters. And Reu lived on for 32 years. Then he became father to Serug. And after his fathering Serug Reu continued to live 207 years. Meanwhile he became father to sons and daughters. And Serug lived on for 30 years. Then he became father to Nahor. And after his fathering Nahor Serug continued to live for 200 years. Meanwhile he became father to sons and daughters. And Nahor lived on for 29 years. Then he became to father to Terah. And after his fathering Terah Nahor continued to live a 119 years. Meanwhile he became father to sons and daughters. And Terah lived on for 70 years, after which he became father to Abram, Nahor and Haran. And this is history of Terah. Terah became father to Abram, Nahor and Haran -- and Haran became father to Lot. Later Haran died while in company with Terah his father in the land of his birth, in Ur of the Chaldeans. And Abram and Nahor proceeded to take wives for themselves. The name of Abram's wife was Sarai, while the name of Nahor's wife was Milcah, the daughter of Haran, the father of Milcah and father of Iscah. But Sarai continued to be barren, she had no child. After that Terah took Abram his son and Lot, the son of Haran, his grandson, and Sarai his daughter in law, the wife of Abram his son, and they went with him out of Ur of the Chaldeans to go to the land of Canaan. In time they came to Haran and took up dwelling there. And the days of Terah came to be 205
years, Then Terah died in Haran. 12 And God proceeded to say to Abram -- "Go your way out of your country and from your relatives and from the house of your father to the country that I shall show you -- and I shall make a great nation out of you and I shall bless you and I will make your name great -- and prove yourself a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who calls evil upon you I shall curse, and all the families of the ground will certainly bless themselves by means of you." At that Abram went just as God had spoken to him, and Lot went with him. And Abram was 75 years old when he went out from Haran. So Abram took his wife Sarai his wife and Lot the son of his brother and all the goods that they had accumulated and the souls whom they had acquired in Haran, and they got on their way out to go the land of Canaan. And Abram went on through the land as far as the site of Shechem, near the big trees of Moreh --and at that time the Canaanite was in the land. God appeared to Abram and said -- "To your seed I am going to give this land." After that he built an altar (holy table) to God who had appeared to him. Later he move from there to the mountainous region to the east of Bethel and pitched his tent with Bethel on the west and Aion the east. Then he built an altar there to God and began to call on the name of the Lord. Afterward Abram broke camp going them from encampment to encampment toward Neg'eb. Now a famine arose in the land and Abram made his way down toward Egypt to reside there as an alien, because the famine was severe in the land. And it came about as soon as he got near to entering Egypt, then he said to Sarai his wife -- "Please, now I well know you are a woman beautiful in appearance. So it is bound to happen that the Egyptians will see you and will say, 'This is his wife' and they will certainly kill me, but you they will preserve alive. Please say you are my sister, in order that it may go well with me on your account, and my soul will be certain to live due to you." So it happened that, as soon as Abram entered Egypt, the Egyptians got to see the woman, that she was very beautiful. And the princes of Pharaoh also got to see her and they began praising her to Pharaoh, so the woman was taken to the house of Pharaoh. And they treated Abram well because of her account, and he came to have sheep and cattle and asses (donkeys) and menservants and maidservants, and she-asses and camels. Then God touched Pharaoh and his household with a great plagues because of Sarai, Abraham's wife. With that Pharaoh called Abram and said -- "what have you done to me? Why did not tell me that she was your wife? Why did you say, 'She is my sister,' so that I was about to take her as my wife? And now here is your wife. Take her and go!" And Pharaoh issued commands to men concerning him, and they went escorting him and his wife and all that he had. 13 Following that Abram went up out of Egypt with all they had, and Lot with him, to the Negeb. And Abram was heavily stocked with herds and silver and gold. And he made
his way from encampment to encampment out of the Negeb and to Bethel, to the place where his tent had been at 1st between Bethel and Ai, to the place of the altar that he had made originally -- and Abram proceeded to call there on the name of the Lord. Now Lot who was going along with Abram, also owned sheep and cattle and tents. So the land did not allow for them to dwell all together, because their goods had become many and they were not able to dwell together. And a quarrel arose between the herders of Abram's livestock -- and the herders of Lot's livestock -- and at the time Canaanite and Perizzite were dwelling in the land. Hence Abram said to Lot -- "Please, do not let any quarreling continue between me and you and between my herdsmen, and your herdsmen, for we men are brothers! Is not the whole land available to you? Please, separate from me. If you go to the left, then I will go to the right -- but if you go to the right-- then I will go to the left." So Lot raised his eyes and saw the whole District of Jordan, and all of it was well-watered region before God brought Sodom and Gomorrah to ruin, Like the garden of God, like the land of Egypt as far as Zoar. Then Lot chose for himself whole District of Jordan, and Lot moved his camp to the east. So they separated the one from the other. Abram dwelt in the land of Canaan, but Lot dwelt among the cities of the District. Finally he pitched tent near Sodom. And the men of Sodom were bad and were gross sinners against Jehovah. Then God said to Abram after Lot had separated from him -- "Raise your eyes, please, and look from the place where you are, northward and southward and eastward to westward, because all of the land at which you are looking, to you and to your seed I am going to give it until time indefinite. And I will constitute your seed like the dust particles of the earth, so that, if a man could be able to count the dust particles of the earth, then your seed could be numbered. Get up, go about in the land through its length and through its breadth, because to you I am going to give it." So Abram continued to live in tents. Later on he came and dwelt among the big trees of Mamre, which are in Hebron -- and there he proceeded to build an altar to the Lord. 14 Now it came about in the days of Amraphel king of Shinar, Arioch king of Ellasar, Chedorlamer king of Elam, and Tidal king of Goiim that these made war with Bera king of Sodom, and with Birsha king of Gomorrah, Shinab king of Admah, and Shemeber king of Zebhoiim, and the king of Bela (that is to say, Zoar). All these marched as allies to the Low Plain of Siddim, that is, the Salt Sea. 12 years they had served Chedorlaomer, but the 13th year they rebelled. And the 14th year Chedorlaomer came, and also the kings who were with him, and they inflicted defeats on the Rephaim in Horites in Ashterothkarnaim, and the Zuzim in Ham, and the Emim in Shavehkiriathaim, and their mountain of Seir, down to Elparan, which is at the wilderness. Then they turned about and came to Enmishpat, that is, Kadesh, and defeated the whole field of
the Amalekites and also the Amorites who were dwelling in Hazazontamar. At this point the king of Sodom went on the march, and also the king of Gomorrah and the king of Admah and the king Zeboiim and the king of Bela (that is to say, Zoar), and they drew up in battle order against them in low plains of Siddim, against Chedolaomer king of Elam and Tidal king of Goiim and Amraphel king of Shinar and Arioch king Ellasar -- 4 kings against the 5. Now the Low plain of Siddim was pits upon pits of bitumen -- and the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah took to flight and went falling into them, and those who remained fled to the mountainous region. Then the victors took all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah and all their food and went on their way. They also took Lot the son of Abram's brother and his goods and continued on their way. He was then dwelling in Sodom. After that a man who had escaped came and told Abram the Hebrew. He was then tabermacling among the big trees in Mamre the Amorite, the brother of Eshcol and brother of Aner, and they were confederates (partners) of Abram. Thus Abram got to hear that his brother had been taken captive. With that he mustered his trained men -- 318 slaves born his household and went in pursuit up to Dan. And by night he resorted to dividing his forces, he and his slaves, against them, and thus he defeated them and kept in pursuit of them up to Hobah, which is north of Damascus. And he proceeded to recover all the goods, and recovered also Lot his brother, and his goods and also women and the people. Then the king of Sodom went out to meet him after he returned from defeating Chedolaomer and the kings that were with him, to the Low Plain of Shaveh, that is, the king's Low Plain. And Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine, and he was a priest of Most High God. Then he blessed him and said -- " Blessed be Abram of the Most High God, Producer of heaven and earth -- And blessed the Most High God, Who has delivered your oppressors into your hand!" At that Abram gave him a 10th (1/10) of everything. After that the king of Sodom said to Abram -- "Give me the souls (people), but take the goods for yourself." At this Abram said to the king of Sodom -- "I do lift up my hand in an oath to God the Most High God, Producer of heaven and earth, that, from a thread to a sandal lace, no, I shall take nothing from anything that is yours, in order that you may not say, 'It was I who made Abram rich! Nothing for me! Only what the young men already eaten, and the share of the men who went with me, Aner, Eshcol and Mamre -- let them have their share." 15 After these things the word of God came to Abram in a vision, saying -- "Do not fear, Abram. I am a shield for you. Your reward will be very great." At this Abram said -- "Sovereign Lord God, what will you give me, seeing that I am going childless and the one who will possess my house is man of Damascus, Eliezer?" And Abram added --"Look you have
given me no seed, and, look! a son of my household is succeeding me as heir?" But, look! the word of God to him was in these words -- "This man will not succeed you as heir, but one who will come out of your own inward parts will succeed you as heir." He now brought him outside and said -- "Look up, please, to the heavens and count the stars, if you are possibly able to count them." And we went on to say to him -- "So your seed will become." And he put faith in the Lord and proceeded to count it to him as righteousness. Then he added to him -- "I am the Lord who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to take it in possession." To this he said -- "Sovereign Lord God, by what shall I know that I shall take it in possession?" In turn he said to him -- "Take for me a 3 year old heifer and a 3 year old she-goat and a 3 year old ram and a turtle-dove and a young pigeon." So he took all these to himself and cut them in 2 and put each part of them so as to match the other, but the birds he did not cut in pieces. And the birds of prey began to descend upon the carcasses, but Abram kept driving them away. After a while sun was about to set and deep sleep fell upon Abram, and, look! frightfully great darkness was falling upon him. And he began to say to Abram -- "You may know for sure that your seed will become an alien resident in a land not theirs, and they will have to serve them, and they will certainly afflict them for 400 years. But the nation that they will serve I am judging and after that they will go out with many goods. As for you, you will go to your forefathers in peace -- you will be buried at good old age. But in the 4th generation they will return here, because the error of the Amorites has not yet come to completion." The sun was now setting and a dense darkness came and, look! a smoking furnace and a fiery torch that passed in between these pieces. On that day Lord concluded with Abram a covenant, saying -- "To your seed I will give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates -- the Kenites and the Kenizzites and the Kadmonites and Hittites and the Perizzites and the Rephaim and the Amorites and the Canaanites and the Girgashites and the Jebusites." 16 Now Sarai, Abram's wife, had borne to him no children -- but she had an Egyptian maidservant and her name was Hagar. Hence Sarai said to Abram -- "Please now! God has shut me off from bearing children. Please, have relations with my maidservant. Perhaps I may get children from her." So Abram listened to the voice of Sarai. Then Sarai, Abram's wife, took Hagar, her Egyptian maidservant, at the end of 10 years of Abram's dwelling in the land of Canaan, and gave her to Abram her husband as his wife. Accordingly he had relations with Hagar, and she became pregnant. When she became aware that she was pregnant, then the mistress began to be despised in her eyes. At this Sarai said to Abram -- "The violence done me be upon you. I myself gave my maidservant over to your bosom, and she became aware that she was pregnant, and I began to be despised in her eyes. May God judge between me and you."
So Abram said to Sarai -- "Look! your maidservant is at your disposal. Do to her what is good in your eyes." Then Sarai began to humiliate her so that she ran away from her. Later the Lord God's angel found her at a fountain of waters in the wilderness, at the fountain on the way to Shur. And he began to say -- "Hagar, maidservant to Sarai, just where have you come from and where are you going?" to this she said -- "Why from Sarai my mistress I am running away." And God's angel went on to say to her -- "Return to your mistress and humble yourself under her hand." Then God's angel said to her -- "I shall greatly multiply your seed, so that it will be numbered (limited) for multitude (many)." Further God's angel added to her-- "Here you are pregnant, and you shall give birth to a son and must call his name Ishmael -- for God has heard your affliction. As for him, he will become a zebra of a man. His hand will be against everyone, and the hand of everyone will be against him, and before the face of all of his brothers he will tabernacle. Then she began to call the name of the Lord, who was speaking to her -- "You are a God of sight," for she said -- "Have I here actually looked upon him who sees me?" That is why the well was called Beerlahairoi. Here it is between Kadesh and Bered. Later on Hagar bore to Abram a son and Abram called the name of his son whom Hagar bore to Ishmael. And Abram was 86 years old at Hagar's bearing Ishmael to Abram. 17 When Abram got to be 90 years old, then God appeared to Abram and said to him-- " I am God Almighty. Walk before me and prove yourself faultless. And I will give my covenant (protection, relationship) between me and you, that I may multiply you very, very much." At this Abram fell upon his face, and God continued to speak with him, saying -- "As for me, look! my covenant is with you, and you will certainly become a father a crowd of nations. And your name will not be called Abram anymore, and your name must become Abraham, because a father of crowd of nations I will make of you. And I will make you very, very fruitful and make you become nations, and kings will come out of you. "And I will carry out my covenant between me and you and your seed after you according to their generations for a covenant to time indefinite, to prove myself God to you and to your seed after you. And I will give you and to your seed after you the land of your alien residences, even the entire Canaan, for a possession to time indefinite -- and I will prove myself God to them." And God said further to Abraham -- "As for you, you are to keep my covenant, you and your seed after you according to your generations. This is my covenant that you men will keep, between me and you men, even your seed after you --Every male of yours must get circumcised. And you must get circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins and it must serve as sign of the covenant between me and you. And every male of yours at 8 days old must be circumcised, according to your generations, anyone born in the house and anyone purchased with money from any foreigner who is not from your seed. Every man born in your house and every man purchased
with money of yours must without fail get circumcised -- and my covenant in the flesh of you men must serve as covenant to time indefinite. And an uncircumcised male who will not get the flesh of his foreskin circumcised, even that soul must be cut off from his people. He has broken my covenant." And God went on to say --"As for Sarai your wife, you must not call her name Sarai, because Sarah is her name. And I will bless her and also give you a son from her -- and I will bless her and she shall become nations -- kings of people will come from her." At this Abraham fell upon his face and began to laugh and to say in his heart -- "Will a man 100 years old have a child born. and will Sarah, yes, will a woman 90 years old give birth?" After that Abraham said to true God -- "O that Ishmael might live before you!" To this God said -- "Sarah your wife is indeed bearing you a son, and must call his name Isaac. And I will establish my covenant with him for a covenant to time indefinite to his seed after him. But as regards Ishamel I have heard you. Look! I will bless him and will make him fruitful and will multiply him very, very much. He will certainly will produce 12 chieftains (princes), and I will make him become a great nation. However, my covenant I shall establish with Isaac, whom Sarah will bear to you at this appointed time next year." With that God finished speaking with him and went up from Abraham. Abraham then proceeded to take Ishmael his son and all the men born in his son and all the men born in his house and everyone purchased with money of his, of every male among the men of the household of Abraham and he went to circumcising the flesh of their foreskins in this very day, just as God had spoken with him. And Abraham was 99 years old when he had the flesh of his foreskin circumcised. And Ishmael his son was 13 years old when he had the flesh of his foreskins circumcised. In this very day Abraham got circumcised, and also Ishmael his son. And all the men of his household, anyone born in the house and anyone purchased with money from a foreigner, got circumcised with him. 18 Afterward God appeared to him among the big trees of Mamre, while he was sitting at the entrance of the tent about the heat of the day. When he raised his eyes, then he looked and there 3 men were standing some distance from him. When he caught a sight of them he began running to meet them from the entrance of the tent and proceeded to bow down to the earth. Then he said -- "Lord, if, now, I have found favor in your eyes, please do not pass by your servant. Let a little water be taken, please, and you must have your feet washed. Then recline under the tree. And let me get a piece of bread, and refresh your hearts. Following that, you can pass on, because that is why you have passed this way to your servant." At this they said -- "All right. You may do just as you have spoken." So Abraham went hurrying to the tent to Sarah and said -- "Hurry! Get 3 seah (1 seah = 7.33 liters, so 3 seah is 21.99 liters) measure of fine flour, knead the dough and bake round cakes." Next Abraham ran to the herd and proceeded to get a tender and good young bull and to give it to the attendant, and he went hurrying to get it ready. He
then took butter and milk and the young bull that he had got ready and set it before them. Then he himself kept standing by them under the tree as they were eating. They now said to him -- "Where is Sarah your wife?" To this he said -- "Here in the tent!" So he continued -- "I am surely going to return to you next year at this time, and, look! Sarah your wife will have a son." Now Sarah was listening at the tent entrance, and it was behind the man. And Abraham and Sarah were old, being advanced in years. Sarah had stopped having menstruation. Hence Sarah began to laugh inside herself, saying -- "After I am worn out, shall I really have pleasure, my lord being old besides?" Then God said to Abraham -- "Why was that Sarah laughed, saying, 'Shall I really and truly give birth although I have become old?' Is anything too extraordinary for Jehovah? At the appointed time I shall return to you, next year at this time, and Sarah will have a son." But Sarah began to deny it, and saying --"I did not laugh!" For she was afraid. At this he said, "No! But you did laugh." Later the men got up from there and looked down toward Sodom, and Abraham was walking with them to escort them. And God said -- "Am I keeping covered from Abraham what I am doing? Why, Abram is surely going to become a nation great and mighty, and all the nations of the earth must bless themselves by means of him. For I have become acquainted with him in order that he may command his sons and his household after him so that they shall keep Lord's way to do righteousness and judgment -- in order that Lord may certainly bring upon Abraham what he has spoken about him." Consequently the Lord God said -- "The cry and complaint about Sodom and Gomorrah, yes, it is loud, and their sin, yes, it is very heavy. I am quite determined to go down that I may see whether they act altogether according to the outcry over it that has come to me, if not, I can get to know it." At this point the men turned from there and got on their way to Sodom -- but as for God, he was still standing before Abraham. Then Abraham approached and began to say -- "Will you really sweep away the righteous with the wicked? Suppose there are 50 righteous men in the midst of the city. Will you, then, sweep away the righteous with the wicked? Will you, then, sweep them away and not pardon the place for the sake of the 50 righteous who are inside it? It is unthinkable of you that you are acting in manner to put to death the righteous man with the wicked one so that it has to occur with the righteous man as it does with the wicked! It is unthinkable of you. Is the Judge of all the earth not going to do what is right?" Then Lord said -- "I shall find in Sodom 50 righteous men in midst of the city I will pardon the whole place on their account." But Abraham went to answer and say -- "Please, I have taken upon myself to speak to God, whereas I am dust and ashes. Suppose 50 righteous should be lacking 5. Will you for the 5, bring the whole city to ruin? To this he said -- "I shall not bring it to ruin if I find there 45." But yet again he spoke further to him and said -- "Suppose 40 are found there?" In turn he said -- "I shall not do it on account of the 40." But he continued -- "May God, please, not
grow hot with anger, but let me go on speaking. Suppose 30 are found there." In turn he said -- "I shall not do it if I find 30 there." But he continued on -- "Please, here I have taken upon myself to speak to Jehovah -- Suppose 20 are found there." In turn he said -- "I shall not bring it to ruin on account of 20." Finally he said --"May God, please, not grow hot with anger, but let me speak just this once -- Suppose 10 are found there." In turn he said -- "I shall not bring it to ruin on account of the 10." Then Jehovah went his way when he finished speaking to Abraham, and Abraham returned to his place. 19 Now the 2 angels arrived at Sodom by evening, and Lot was sitting in the gate of Sodom. When Lot caught sight of them, then he got up to meet them and bowed down with his face to the earth. And he proceeded to say -- "Please, now, my lords, turn aside, please, into to the house of your servant and stay overnight and have your feet washed. Then you must get up early and travel on your way." To this they said -- "No, but in the public square is where we shall stay overnight." But he was very insistent with them, so that they turned aside to him and came into his house. Then he made a feast for them, and he baked unfermented cakes, and they went to eating. Before they could lie down, the men of the city, the men of Sodom, surrounded the house, from boy to old man, all the people in one mob. And they kept calling out to Lot and saying to him -- "Where are the men who came in to you tonight? Bring them out to us that we may have interc*urse with them." Finally Lot went out to the entrance, but he shut the door behind him. Then he said -- "Please, my brothers, do not act badly. Please, here I have 2 daughters who never had interc*urse (virgins) with a man. Please, let me bring them out to you. Then do to them as is good in your eyes. Only to these men do not do a thing, because that is why they have come under my roof." At this they said -- "Stand back there!" And they added -- "This lone man here to reside as an alien and yet he would actually play the judge! Now we are going to do worse to you than to them." And they came pressing heavily in on the man, on Lot, and were getting near to break in the door. So the men thrusted out their hands and brought Lot in to them, into the house, and they shut the door. But they struck with blindness the men who were at the entrance of the house, from the least to the greatest, so that they were wearing themselves out trying to find the entrance. Then the men said to Lot -- "Do you have anyone else here? Sons-in-law and your sons and your daughters and all who are yours in the city, bring out the place! For we are bringing this place to ruin, because the outcry against them has grown loud before God, so that Jehovah sent us to bring city to ruin." Hence Lot went on out and began to speak to his sons-in-law who were to take his daughters and kept on saying -- "Get up! Get out of this place, because God is bringing the city to ruin!" But in the eyes of his sons-in-law he seemed like a man who was joking. However, when the dawn ascended, then the angels became urgent with Lot, saying -- "Get up! Take your wife and your 2 daughters who are found
here, for fear you may be swept away in the error of the city!" When he kept lingering, then in the compassion of God upon him, the men seized hold of his hand and of the hand of his wife and of the hands of his 2 daughters and they proceeded to bring him out and to station him outside the city. And it came about that, as soon as they had brought them forth to the outskirts, he began to say -- "Escape for your soul!" Do not look behind you and do not stand still in all the District! Escape to the mountainous region for fear you may be swept away!" Then Lot said to them -- "Not that, please, God! Please, now, your servant has found favor in your eyes, so that you are magnifying your loving kindness, which you have exercised with me to preserve my soul alive, but I - I am not able to escape to the mountainous region for fear calamity may keep close to me and I certainly die. Please, now, this city is nearby to flee there and it is a small thing. May I, please escape there -- is it not a small thing? -- and my soul will live on." So he said to him -- "Here I do show you consideration to this extent also, by my not overthrowing the city of which you have spoken. Hurry! Escape there, because I am not able to do a thing until your arriving there!" That is why he called the name of the city Zoar. The sun had gone forth over the land when Lot arrived at Zoar. Then God made it rain sulphur and fire from God, from the heavens, upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah. So he went ahead overthrowing these cities, even the entire District and all the inhabitants of the cities and the plants of the ground. And his wife began to look around from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt. Now Abraham made his way early in the morning to the place where he had stood before God. Then he looked down toward all the land of the District and saw a sight. Why, here thick smoke ascended from the land like the thick smoke of a kiln! And it came about that when God brought the cities of District to ruin God kept Abraham in mind in that he took steps to send Lot out of the midst of the overthrow when overthrowing the cities among which Lot had been dwelling. Later Lot went up from Zoar and began dwelling in the mountainous region, and his 2 daughters along with him, because he got afraid of dwelling in Zoar. So he began dwelling in a cave, he and his 2 daughters. And the 1st born proceeded to say to the younger woman -- "Our father is old and there is not a man in the land to have relations with us according to the way of the whole earth. Come, let us give father wine to drink and let us lie down with him and preserve offspring from our father." So they kept giving their father wine to drink during that night -- then the 1stborn went in and and lay down with her father, but he did not know when she lay down and when she got up. And it came about on the next day that the 1stborn then said to the younger -- "Here I lay down with my father last night. Let us give him wine to drink tonight also. Then you go in, lie down with him, and let us preserve offspring from our father." So they repeatedly gave their father wine to drink during that
night also -- then the younger got up and lay down with him, but he did not know when she lay down and she got up. And both the daughters of Lot became pregnant from their own father. In time the 1stborn became mother to a son and called his name Moab, to this day. As for the younger, she too gave birth to a son and then called his name Benammi. He is the father of the sons of Ammon, to this day. 20 Now Abraham moved camp from there to the land of the Negeb and took up dwelling between Kadesh and Shur and residing as an alien at Gerar. And Abraham repeated concerning Sarah his wife -- ""She is my sister that Abimelech in a dream by night and said to him -- "Here you are as good as dead because of the woman whom you have taken, since she is owned by another owner as his wife." However, Abimelech had not gone near her. Hence he said -- "God, will you kill a nation did not go near her, so he said to God, "Jehovah, will you kill a nation that is really righteous? Did not say to me, 'She is my sister?' and she -- did not too say, 'He is my brother'? In the honesty of my heart and with innocency of my hands I have done this." At that the true God said to him in the dream -- "I too have known that in the honesty of your heart you have done this, and I was also holding you back from sinning against me. That is why I did not allow you to touch her. But now return the man's wife, for he is a prophet, and he will make supplication (beg, entreaty, plea) for you. So keep living. But if you are not returning her, know that you will positively die, you and all who are yours." So Abimelech got up early in the morning and proceeded to call all his servants and to speak of all these things in their ears. And the men got very much afraid. Then Abimelech called Abraham and said to him -- "What have you done to us, and what sin have I committed against you, in that you have brought upon me and my kingdom, a great sin? Deeds that should not have been done you have done in connection with me." And Abimelech went on to say to Abraham -- "What did you have in view in that you have done this thing?" To this Abraham said -- "It was because I said to myself, 'Doubtless there is no fear of God in this place, and they will certainly will kill me because of my wife." And besides, she is truly my sister, the daughter of my father -- only not the daughter of my mother, and she became my wife. And it came about that, when God caused me to wander from the house of my father, then I said to her, 'This is your loving kindness which you may exercise toward me -- At every place where we shall come say of me -- "He is my brother."'" Following that Abimelech took sheep and cattle and menservants and maidservants and gave them to Abraham and returned to him Sarah his wife. Further Abimelech said -- "Here my land is available to you. Dwell where good it is in your eyes." And to Sarah he said -- "Here I do give a 1,000 silver pieces of money to your brother. Here it is for you a covering of the eyes to all who are with you, and before everybody, and you are cleared of reproach." And Abraham began to make supplication to the true God -- and God proceeded to heal Abimelech and his wife and his slave girl, and they
God that you will not prove false to me and to my offspring and to my posterity (future generations) -- that, according to loyal love with which I have dealt with you, you will deal with me and with the land in which you have been residing as an alien." So Abraham said -- "I shall swear." When Abraham criticized Abimelech severely as regards the well of water that the servants of Abimelech had seized by violence, then Abimelech said -- "I do not know who did this thing, neither did you or yourself tell it to me, and I myself have not heard of it except today." With that Abraham took sheep and cattle and gave them to Abimelech, and both of them proceeded to conclude a covenant. When Abraham set 7 female lambs of the flock by themselves, Abimelech went on to say to Abraham -- "What is the meaning here of these 7 female lambs that you have set by themselves?" Then he said -- "You are to accept the 7 females lambs at my hand, that it may serve as witness for me that I have dug this well." That is why he called that place Beersheba, because there both of them had taken an oath. So they concluded a covenant at Beersheba, after which Abimelech got up together with Philcol the chief of his army returned to the land of the Philistines. After that he planted a tamarsik tree at Beersheba and called there upon the name of God the indefinite lasting God. And Abraham extended his residence as an alien in the land of the Philistines many days. 22 Now after these things it came about that the true God put Abraham to the test. Accordingly he said to him-- "Abraham!" to which he said -- "Here I am." And he went on to say -- "Take, please, your son, your only son whom you so love, Isaac, and make a trip to land of Moriah and there offer him up as a burnt offering on one of the mountains that I shall designate to you." So Abraham got up early in the morning and saddled his ass and took 2 of his attendants with him and Isaac his son -- and he split the wood for burnt offering. Then he rose and went on the trip to the place that the true God designated to him. It was 1st on the 3rd day that Abraham raised his eyes and began to see the place from a distance. Abraham now said to his 2 attendants -- "You stay here with the ass, but I and the boy want to go on there and worship and return to you." After that Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and put in on Isaac his son and took in his hands the fire and slaughtering knife, and both of them went on together. And Isaac began to say to Abraham his father -- "My father!" In return he said -- "Here I am, my son!" So he continued -- "Here are the fire and the wood, but where is the sheep for the burnt offering?" To this Abraham said -- "God will provide himself the sheep for the burnt offering, my son." And both of them walked together. Finally they reached the place that the true God had designated to him, and Abraham built an altar there and set the wood in order and bound Isaac his son hand and foot and put him upon the altar on top of the wood. Then Abraham put out his hand and took the slaughtering knife to kill his son. But God's angels calling to him out of the
heavens and saying --"Abraham, Abraham!" to which he answered --
"Here I am!" And he went on to say --"Do not put out your hands against the boy and do not do anything at all to him, for now I do know that you are God-fearing in that you have not withheld your son, your only one, from me." At that Abraham raised his eyes and looked and there, deep in the foreground was ram caught by its horns in a thicket. So Abraham went and took the ram and offered it up for a burnt offering in place of his son. And Abraham began to call the name of that place Jehovahjireh. This is why it is customarily said today -- "In the mountain of Jehovah it will be provided." And Jehovah's Angel proceeded to call to Abraham the 2nd time out of the heavens and to say -- "'By myself I do swear,' is the utterance of God, that by the reason of the fact that you have done this thing, you have not withheld your son, your only one. I shall surely bless you and shall certainly multiply your offspringas many as stars in the sky and sands on the shore and your seed like the stars of the heavens and like the grains of sand that are on the seashore -- and your seed will take possession of the gate of his enemies. And by means of your seed all nations of the earth will certainly bless themselves due to the fact that you have listened to my voice.'" After that Abraham returned to his attendants, and they got up and went their way together to Beersheba -- and Abraham continued to dwell at Beersheba. Now it came about after these things that the report got through to Abraham -- "Here Milcah herself has also borne sons to Nahor your brother -- Uz his 1st born and Buz his brother and Kemuel the father of Aram, and Chesed and Hazo and Pildash and Jidlaph and Bethuel." And Bethuel became father of Rebekah. These 8 Milcah bore to Nahor the brother of Abraham. There was his concubine too, whose name was Reumah. In time she herself also gave birth to Tebah and Gaham and Tahash and Maacah. 23 And Sarah's life got to be a 127 years long. They were the years of Sarah's life. So Sarah died in Kiriatharba, that is to say, Hebron, in the land of Canaan, and Abraham came in to bewail Sarah and to weep over her. Then Abraham got up from before his dead and proceeded to speak to the sons of Heth, saying -- "An alien resident and settler I am among you. Give me the possession of a burial place among you that I may bury my dead out of my sight." At this the sons of Heth answered Abraham, saying to him-- "Hear us, my lord, a chieftain of God you are in the midst of us. In the choicest of our burial places bury your dead. None of us will hold back his burial place from you to prevent burying your dead." Thereupon Abraham got up and bowed down to the natives, to the sons of Heth, and spoke with them, saying -- "If your souls agree to bury my dead out of my sight, listen to me and urge Ephron the son of Zohar for me, that he may give me the cave of Machpelah, which is his, which is at the extremity of his field. For the full amount of silver let him give it to me in the midst of you for the possession of a burial place." As it was, Ephron was sitting among the sons of Heth. So Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham in the hearing of the
sons of Heth with all those entering the gate of his city, saying --"No, my lord! Listen to me. The field I do give to you, and the cave that is in it to you I do give it. Before the eyes of the sons of my people I do give it to you. Bury your dead." At that Abraham bowed down before the natives, and spoke to Ephron in the hearing of the natives, saying -- "Only if you -- no, listen to me! I will give you the amount of silver for the field. Take it from me, that I may bury my dead there." Then Ephron answered Abraham, saying to him -- "My lord, listen to me. A land plot worth 400 shekels, what is that between me and you? So bury your dead." Accordingly Abraham listened to Ephron and Abraham weighed out to Ephron the amount of silver that he had spoken in the hearing of the sons of Heth, 400 silver shekels current with the merchants. Thus the field of Ephron that was Machpelah, which is in front of Mamre, the field and the cave that was in it and all the trees that were in the field, which were within all its boundaries round about, became confirmed to Abraham as his purchased property before the eyes of the sons of Heth among all those entering the gate of his city. And after that Abraham buried Sarah his wife in the cave of the field of Machpelah in front of Mamre, that is to say, Hebron, in the land of Canaan. Thus the field and the cave that was in it became confirmed to Abraham for the possession of a burial place at the hands of the sons of Heth. 24 Now Abraham was old, advanced in years -- and God had blessed him in everything. Hence Abraham said to his servant, oldest one of his household, who was managing all he had -- "Put your hand, please, under my thigh, as I must have you swear by God, the Lord of the heavens and the God of the earth, that you will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites in among whom I am dwelling, but you will go to my country and to my relatives, and you will certainly take a wife for my son, for Isaac." However, the servant said to him -- "What if the woman does not wish to come with me to this land? Must I be sure to return your son to the land from where you went out?" At this Abraham said to him -- "Be on your guard that you do not return my son there. God the Lord of the heavens, who took me from my father's house and from the land of my relatives and who spoke to me and who swore to me, saying -- 'To your seed I am going to give this land,' he will send his angel ahead of you, and you will certainly take a wife for my son from there. But if the woman should not wish to come with you, you also will have become is free from this oath you gave me. Only you must not return my son there.'" With that the servant put his hand under the thigh of Abraham his master and swore to him concerning this matter. So the servant took 10 camels from the camels of his master and proceeded to go with every sort of good thing of his master's in his hand. Then he rose and got on his way to Mesopotamia to the city of Nahor. Eventually, he had the camels kneel down outside the city at a well of water about evening time, about the time that the women who draw water were accustomed to go out. And
he went on to say -- "God the Lord of my master Abraham, cause it to happen, please, before me this day and perform loving kindness with my master Abraham. Here I am stationed at a fountain of water, and the daughters of the men of the city are coming out to draw water. What must occur is that the young woman to whom I shall say -- 'Let water jar down, please, that I may take a drink,' and who will indeed say -- 'Take a drink, and I shall also water your camels' this is the one you must assign to your servant, to Isaac -- and by this let me know that you have performed loyal love with my master." Well, it came about that before he had finished speaking, why, here coming out was Rebekah, who had been born to Bethuel the son of Milcah the wife Nahor, Abraham's brother. And her water jar was upon her shoulder. Now the young woman was very attractive in appearance, a virgin, and no man had se*ual interc*urse with her -- and she made her way down to fill her water jar and then came up. At once the servant ran to meet her and said -- "Give me, please, a little sip of water from your jar." In turn she said -- "Drink, my lord." With that she quickly lowered her jar upon her hand and gave him a drink. When she was finished giving him a drink, then she said -- "For your camels too I shall draw water until they are done drinking." So she quickly emptied her jar into a trough and ran yet again and again to the well to draw water, and kept drawing for all of his camels. All the while the man gazing at her in wonder, keeping silent to know whether God had made his trip successful or not. Consequently it came about that, when the camels had finished drinking, then the man took a gold nose ring of 1/2 shekel in weight and 2 bracelets for her hands, 10 shekels of gold was their weight, and he went on to say -- "Whose daughter are you? Tell me, please. Is there any room at the house of your father for us to spend the night?" At that she said to him -- "I am the daughter of Bethuel the son of Milcah, whom she bore him to Nahor." And she said further to him -- "There is both straw and much fodder with us, also a place to spend the night." And the man proceeded to bow down and prostrate (lay face down on the ground his arms stretched out by his sides) before God and say -- "Blessed be Jehovah the God of my master Abraham, who has not left loving-kindness and his trustworthiness toward my master. I being on the way, God has led me to the house of the brothers of my master." And young woman went running and telling the household of her mother about these things. Now Rebekah had a brother and his name was Laban. So Laban went running to the man who was outside at the fountain. And it came about that on seeing the nose ring and the bracelets on the hands of sister and on hearing the words of Rebekah his sister saying-- "This was the way the man spoke to me," then he came to the man and there he was, standing by the camels at the fountain. At once he said --"Come, you blessed one of God. Why do you keep standing out here, when I myself had made the house ready and room for the camels?" With that the man came on into the house, and he went unharnessed the camels and giving straw and fodder to the camels and water
to wash his feet and the feet of men who were with him. Then something to eat was set before him, but he he said -- "I shall not eat until I have spoken about my matters." Hence he said -- "Speak!" Then he went on to say -- "I am Abraham's servant. And God has blessed my master very much in that he goes on making him greater and giving him sheep and cattle and silver and gold and menservants and maidservants and camels and asses. Further, Sarah the wife of my master bore a son to my master after her growing old -- and he will give him everything he has. So my master made me swear, saying -- 'You must not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites in whose land I am dwelling. No, but you will go to the house of my father and to my family and you must take a wife for my son.' But I said to my master, 'What if the woman will not come with me?' Then he said to me -- 'Jehovah, before whom I have walked, will send his angel with you and will certainly give success to your way -- and you must take a wife for my son from my family and from the house of my father. At that time you will be cleared of obligation to me by oath when you get to my family, and if they will not give her to you, then you shall become free of obligation to me by oath.' "When I got to the fountain today, then I said -- 'God the Jehovah of my master Abraham, if you are really giving success to my way on which I am going, here I am stationed at a fountain of water. What must occur is that the maiden coming out to draw water to whom I shall actually say -- "Please, let me drink a little water from your jar," and who will indeed say to me -- "Both you take a drink, and I shall also draw water for your camels,' she is the woman whom God has assigned for the son of my master.' "Before I was finished speaking in my heart, why, there was Rebekah coming out, with her jar upon her shoulder -- and she made her way down to the fountain and began to draw water. Then I said to her -- 'Give me a drink, please.' So she quickly lowered her jar from off her and said -- 'Take a drink, and I shall also water your camels.' Then I took a drink, and she also watered the camels. After that I asked her and said -- 'Whose daughter are you?' to which she said -- 'The daughter of Bethuel, the son of Nahor, whom Milcah bore to him.' Accordingly I put the nose ring on her nostril and bracelets on her hands. And I proceeded to bow down and prostrate myself before God and bless God the Lord of my master Abraham, who had led me to in the true way to take the daughter of the brother of my master for his son. And now if you are actually exercising loving-kindness and trustworthiness toward my master, tell me, but if not, tell me, that I turn to the right hand or to the left." Then Laban and Bethuel answered and said --"From God this thing has issued. We are unable to speak bad or good to you. Here is Rebekah before you. Take her and go, and let her become a wife to the son of your master, just as God has spoken." And it came about that when Abraham's servant had heared their words, he at once prostrated himself on the earth before God. And the servant began to bring out articles of silver and articles of gold and garments and to give them to Rebekah -- and he gave
choice things to her brother and her mother. After that they ate and drank, he and the men who were with him, and they spent the night there and got up in the morning. Then he said -- "Send me off to my master." To this her brother and her mother said -- "Let the young woman stay with us at least 10 days. Afterward she can go" But he said to them -- "Do not detain me, seeing that God has given success to my way. Send me off, that I may go to my master." So they said --"Let us call the young woman and inquire at her mouth." Then they called Rebekah and said to her -- "Will you go with this man?" In turn she said -- "I am willing to go." At that they sent off Rebekah their sister and her nurse and Abraham's servant and his men. And they began to bless Rebekah and say to her, "O You, our sister, may you become 1,000 X 10,000 and let your seed take possession of the gate of those who hate it." After that Rebekah and her lady attendants rose and they went riding on the camels and following the man -- and the servant took Rebekah and got on their way. Now Isaac had come from the way that goes to Beerlahairoi, for he was dwelling in the land of Negeb. And Isaac was out walking in order to meditate in the field at about the falling of evening. When he raised his eyes and looked, why, there camels were coming! When Rebekah raised her eyes, she caught sight of Isaac and she swung herself down from off the camel. Then she said to the servant -- "Who is that man there walking in the field to meet us?" and the servant said -- "It is my master." And she proceeded to take a headcloth and to cover herself. And the servant went relating to Isaac all the things he had done. After that Isaac brought her into the tent of Sarah, his mother. Thus he took Rebekah and she became his wife -- and he fell in love with her, and Isaac found comfort after the loss of his mother. 25 Furthermore, Abraham again took a wife, her name was Keturah. In time she gave birth to Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak and Shuah. And Jokshan became father to Sheba and Dedan. And the sons of Dedan became Asshurim, Letushim, Leummim. And the sons of Midian were Ephah, Epher, Hanoch, Abida and Eldaah. All these were the sons of Keturah. Later on Abraham gave everything he had to Isaac, but to the sons of concubines that Abraham had Abraham gave gifts. Then he sent them away from Isaac his son, while he was still alive, eastward, to the land of the East. And these are the days of the years of Abraham's life which he lived, 175 years. Then Abraham expired and died in good old age, old and satisfied, and was gathered to his people. So Isaac and Ishmael his sons buried him in the cave of Machpelah in the field of Ephron the son of Zohar the Hittite that is in front of Mamre, the field that Abaham had purchased from sons of Heth. There Abraham was buried, and also Sarah his wife. And it developed that after Abraham's death God continued to bless Isaac his son, and Isaac
was dwelling close by Beerlahairoi. And this is the history of Ishmael
the son of Abraham whom Hagar the Egyptian the maidservant of Sarah
bore to Abraham. Now these are the names of the sons of Ishmael, by their names, according to their family origins -- Ishmael's 1st born Nebaioth and Kedar and Adbeel and Mibsam and Mishma and Dumah and Massa, Hadad and Tema, Jetur, Naphish and Kedemah. These are the sons of Ishmael, and these are the their names by their courtyards and by their walled camps -- 12 chieftains according to their clans. And these are the years of Ishmael's life, a 137 years. Then he expired and died and was gathered to his people. And they took up tabernacling from Havilah near Shur, which is in front of Egypt, as far as Assyria. In front of all his brothers he settled down. And this is the history of Isaac the son of Abraham. Abraham became father to Isaac. And Isaac happened to be 40 years old at his taking Rebekah the daughter of Bethuel the Syrian of Paddanaram, the sister of Laban the Syrian, as his wife. And Isaac kept on entreating Jehovah especially for his wife, because she was barren, so Jehovah let himself be entreated for him, and Rebekah his wife became pregnant. And the sons within her began to struggle with each other, so that she said -- "If this is the way it is, just why am I alive?" With that she went to inquire of Jehovah. And God proceeded to say to her -- "2 nations are in your belly, and 2 national groups will be separated from your inward parts -- and the one national group will be stronger than the other national group, and the older will serve the younger." Gradually her days came to the full for giving birth, and, look! twins were in her belly. Then the 1st came out red all over like an official garment of hair -- so they called his name Esau. And after that his brother came out and his hand was holding onto the heel of Esau, so he called his name Jacob. And Isaac was 60 years old at her giving them birth. And the boys got bigger, and Esau became a man knowing how to hunt, a man of the field, but Jacob a blameless man, dwelling in tents. And Isaac had love for Esau, because it meant game in his mouth, whereas Rebekah was lover of Jacob. Once Jacob was boiling up some stew, when Esau came along from the field and he was tired. So Esau said to Jacob -- "Quick, please, give me a swallow of the red -- the red there, for I am tired!" That is why his name was called Edom. To this Jacob said -- "Sell me, 1st of all, your rights as the 1stborn!" And Esau continued -- "Here I am simply going to die, and of what benefit to me is a birthright?" And Jacob added -- "Swear to me 1st of all!" And he proceeded to swear to him and to sell his right as right as 1stborn to Jacob. And Jacob gave Esau bread and lentil stew, and he went eating and drinking. Then he got up and went his way. So Esau despised the birthright. 26 Now there arose a famine in the land, besides the 1st famine that occurred in the days of Abraham, so that Isaac directed himself to Abimelech,
king of the Philistines, to Gerar. Then God appeared to him and said -- "Do not go down to Egypt. Tabernacle in the land that I designated to you. Reside as an alien in this land, and I shall continue with you and bless you, because to you and to your seed I shall give all these lands, I will carry out the sworn statement which I swore to Abraham your father -- 'And multiply your seed like the stars of the heavens and I will give to your seed all these lands -- and by means your seed all nations of the earth will certainly bless themselves.' due to the fact that Abraham listened to my voice and continued to keep his obligations to me, my commands, my statutes, and my laws." So Isaac went on dwelling in Gerar. Well, the men of the place kept asking with respect to his wife, and he would say-- "She is my sister" For he was afraid to say "My wife" for fear that, to quote him -- "the men of the place should kill me because of Rebekah," because she was attractive in appearance. So it came about that as his days there extended themselves Abimelech, king of the Philistines, was looking out the window and taking in the sight, and there was Isaac having a good time with Rebekah. At once Abimelech called Isaac and said, "Why, she is no other than your wife! So how is it you said -- "She is my sister?" At that Isaac said to him -- "I said it for fear I should die on her account." But Abimelch continued -- "What is this you have done to us? A little more and certainly one of the people would have lain down with your wife, and you would have brought guilt upon us!" Then Abimelech commanded all the people, saying -- "Anybody touching this man and his wife will surely be put to death!" After Isaac began to sow seed in that land, and in that year he was getting up to a 100 measures to one, as God blessed him. Consequently the man became great and went on advancing more and more and growing greater until he got very great. And he came to have flocks of sheep and herds of cattle and a large body of servants, so that the Philistines began to envy him. As for the wells that the servants of his father had dug in the days of Abraham his father, these the Philistines stopped up and they would fill them with dry earth. Finally Abimelech said to Isaac -- "Move from our neighborhood, because you have grown far stronger than we are." So Isaac moved from there and encamped in the torrent valley of Gerar and took up dwelling there. And Isaac proceeded to dig again the wells of water that they had dug in the days of Abraham his father but which the Philistines went stopping up after Abraham's death. -- and he resumed calling their names by the names that his father had called them. And the servants of Isaac went on digging in the torrent valley and so they found there a well of fresh water. But the shepherds of Gerar fell to quarreling with shepherds of Isaac, saying -- "The water is ours!" Hence he called name of the well Esek, because they contended with him. And they went digging another well, and they fell to quarreling over it also. Hence he called its name Sitnah. Later he moved away from there and dug another well, but they did not quarrel over it. Hence he called its name Rehoboth and said -- "It
is because now God has given us ample room and has made us fruitful in the earth." Then he went up from there Beersheba. And God proceeded to appear to him during that night and to say -- "I am the God of Abraham your father. Do not be afraid, because I am with you and will bless you and multiply your seed on account of Abraham my servant." Accordingly he built an altar there and called on the name of God and pitched his tent there and the servants of Isaac went excavating a well there. Later on Abimelech came to him from Gerar with Ahuzzath his confidential friend and Phicol the chief of his army. At this Isaac said to them -- "Why have you come to me, seeing that you yourselves hated me and so sent me away from your neighborhood?" To this they said -- "We have unmistakably seen that God has proved to be with you. Hence we said -- 'Let, please, an oath of obligation occur between us, between us and you, and let us conclude a covenant with you, that you will do nothing bad toward us just as we have not touched you and just as we have done only good toward you in that we sent you away in peace. You are now the blessed of God.'" Then he made a feast for them and they ate and drank. Next morning they were early in rising and they made sworn statements one to other. After that Isaac sent them away and they went from him in peace. Now on that day it occurred that the servants of Isaac proceeded to come and reported to him regarding the well that they had dug, and to say to him -- "We have found water!" Hence he called its name Shibah. That is why the name of the city is Beersheba, down to this day. And Esau grew to be 40 years old. Then he took as wife Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite and also Basemath the daughter of Elon the Hittite. And they were source of bitterness of spirit to Isaac and Rebekah. 27 Now it came about that when Isaac was old and his eyes were too dim to see he then called Esau his older son and said to him -- "My son!" at which he said to him -- "Here I am!" And he went on to say -- "Here, now, I have become old. I do not know the day of my death. So at this time take, please, your implements, your quiver and your bow, and go out to the field and hunt some venison (deer) for me. Then make me a tasty dish such as I am fond of and bring it to me and, ah, let me eat, in order that my soul may bless you before I die." However, Rebekah was listening while Isaac spoke to Esau his son. And Esau went out into the field to hunt game and bring it in. And Rebekah said to Jacob her son -- "Here I just heard your father speaking to Esau your brother, saying -- "Bring me some game and make me a tasty dish and, ah, let me eat, that I may bless you before God before my death. And now, my son, listen to my voice in what I am commanding you. Go, please, to the herd and get me from there 2 kids of the goats, good ones, that I may make them up into a tasty dish for your father such as he is fond of. Then you must bring it to your father and he must eat it, in order that he may bless you before his death." And Jacob proceeded to say to Rebekah his mother --
"But Esau my brother is a hairy man and I am a smooth man. What if my father feels me? Then I shall certainly become in his eyes like one making a mockery, and I shall certainly bring upon myself a malediction and not a blessing." At this his mother said to him -- "Upon me be the malediction meant for you, my son. Only listen to my voice and go, get them for me." Accordingly he went and got them and brought them to his mother, and his mother made a tasty dish such as his father was fond of. After that Rebekah took garments of Esau her older son, the most desirable ones which were with her in the house, and put them on Jacob her younger son. And the skins of the kids of the goats she put upon his hands and upon the hairless part of his neck. Then she gave the tasty dish and the bread that she had made into the hand of Jacob her son. So he went on in to his father and said -- "My father!" to which he said -- "Here I am! Who are you, my son?" And Jacob went on to say to his father -- "I am Esau your 1stborn. I have done just as you have spoken to me. Raise yourself up, please. Sit down and eat some of my game, in order that your soul may bless me." At that Isaac said to his son -- "How is it that you have been so quick in finding it, my son?" In turn he said -- "Because your God caused it to meet up with me." Then Isaac said to Jacob -- "Come near, please, that I may feel you, my son, to know whether you are really my son Esau or not." So Jacob came near to Isaac his father, and he went feeling him, after which he said -- "The voice is the voice of Jacob, but the hands are the hands of Esau." And he did not recognize him, because his hands proved to be hairy like the hands of Esau, his brother. Hence he blessed him. After that he said -- "You are really my son Esau?" to which he said -- "I am." Then Isaac said -- "Bring it near to me so I may eat some of the game of my son, to the end that my soul may bless you." with that he brought it near to him and he began to eat, and he brought him wine, and he began to drink. Then Isaac his father said to him -- "Come near, please, and kiss me, my son." So he came near and kissed him, and he could smell the scent of his garments. And he proceeded to bless him and to say -- "See, the scent of my son is like the scent of the field which God blessed and may the true God give you the dews of the heaven and the fertile soils of the earth and an abundance of grain and new wine. Let people serve you and let national groups bow low to you. Become master over your brothers, and let the sons of your mother in law bow low to you. Cursed be each one of those cursing you, and blessed be each one of those blessing you." Now it came about as soon as Isaac had finished blessing Jacob, yes, it indeed came about when Jacob had barely come out from before the face of Isaac his father, that Esau his brother came back from his hunting. And he too went about making a tasty dish. Then he brought it to his father and said to his father -- "Let my father get up and eat some of his son's game, in order that your soul may bless me." At this Isaac his father siad to him -- "Who are you?" to which he said -- "I am your son, your 1stborn, Esau." And Isaac began to shake with a great trembling in extreme measure,
and so he said -- "Who, then, was it that hunted for game and came bringing it to me, so that I ate of everything before you could come in and I blessed him? Blessed too he will become!" On hearing his father's words Esau began to cry out in an extremely loud and bitter manner and to say to his father -- "Bless me, even me too, my father!" But he went on to say -- "Your brother came with deception that he might get the blessing meant for you." At this he said -- "Is that not why his name is called Jacob, in that he should supplant me these 2 times? My birthright he has already taken, and here at this time he has taken my blessing!" Then he added -- "Have you not reserved a blessing for me?" But in answer to Esau Isaac continued -- "Here I have appointed him master over you, and all his brothers I have given to him as servants, and grain and new wine I have bestowed for his support, and where is there anything I can do for you, my son?" Then Esau said to his father -- "Is there just one blessing that you have, my father? Bless me, even me too, my father!" With that Esau raised his voice and burst into tears. So in answer Isaac his father said to him-- "Behold, away from the fertile soils of the earth your dwelling will be found, and away from the dew of the heavens above. And by your sword you will live, and your brother restless, you will indeed break his yoke off your neck." However, Esau harbored animosity for Jacob on account of the blessing with which his father had blessed him, and Esau kept saying in his heart -- "The days of the period of mourning for my father are getting closer. After that I am going to kill Jacob my brother." When the words of Esau her older son were told to Rebekah, she at once sent and called Jacob her younger son and said to him -- "Look! Esau your brother is comforting himself in regard to you -- to kill you. Now, then, my son, listen to my voice and get up, run away to Laban my brother at Haran. And you must dwell with him for some days until the rage of your brother calms down, until the anger of your brother turns away from you and he has forgotten what you done to him. And I shall certainly send and get you from there. Why should I bereaved also of both of you in one day?" After that Rebekah kept saying to Isaac -- "I have come to abhor this life of mine because of the daughters of Heth. If Jacob ever takes a wife from the daughters of Heth like these from the daughters of the land, of what good is life to me?" 28 Consequently Isaac called Jacob and blessed him and commanded him and said to him -- "You must not take a wife from the daughters of Canaan. Get up go to Paddanaram to the house of Bethuel the father of your mother and from there take yourself a wife from the daughters of Laban the brother of your mother. And God Almighty will bless you and make you fruitful and multiply you, and you will certainly become a congregation of peoples. And he will give to you the blessing of Abraham, to you and to your seed with you, that you may take possession of the land of your alien residences, which God has given to Abraham."
So Isaac sent Jacob away, and he struck out for Paddanaram, for Laban the son of Bethuel, the Syrian, brother of Rebekah, the mother of Jacob and Esau. When Esau saw that Isaac had blessed Jacob and had sent him away to Paddanaram to take from there a wife for himself, and that when he blessed him he laid command upon him, saying -- "Do not take a wife from the daughters of Canaan" -- and that Jacob was obeying his father and mother and was on his way to Paddanaram -- Then Esau saw that the daughters of Canaan were displeasing in the eyes of Isaac his father. Hence Esau went to Ishmael and took as wife Mahalath the daughter of Ishmael the son of Abraham, the sister of Nebaioth, besides his other wives. And Jacob continued his way out from Beersheba and kept going to Haran. In time he came across a place and set about spending there because the Sun had set. So he took one of the stones of the place and set it as his head supporter and lay down in that place. And he began to dream and, look! there was a ladder stationed upon the earth and its top reaching up to the heavens, and, look! there were God's angels ascending and descending on it. And look! there was God stationed above it, and he proceeded to say --"I am Jehovah the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac. The land upon which you are lying, to you I am going to give it and to your seed. And your seed will certainly become the dust particles of the earth, and you will certainly spread abroad to the west, to the east and to the north and to the south, and by means of you and by means of your seed all the families of the ground will certainly bless themselves. And here I am with you and I will keep you in all the way you are going and I return you to this ground, because I am not going to leave you until I have actually done what I spoken to you." Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said - "Truly Jehovah is in this place, but I myself didn't know it." And he grew fearful and added -- "How fear inspiring his place is fear inspiring this place is! This is nothing else but the house of God and this is the gate of heavens." So Jacob got up early in the morning and took the stone that was there as his head supporter and set it up as a pillar and poured oil on the top of it. Further, he called the name of that place Bethel -- but the fact is, Luz was city's name formerly. And Jacob went on to vow a vow, saying -- "If God will continue with me and will certainly keep me on this way on which I am going and will certainly give me bread to eat and garments to wear and I shall certainly return in peace to the house of my father, then Jehovah will have proved to be my God. And this stone I have set up as a pillar will become a house of God, and as for everything that you will give me I shall without fail give the 10th of it to you." 29 After that Jacob set his feet in motion and traveled on to the land of the Orientals. Now he looked, and here there was a well in the field and here 3 droves of sheep were lying down there by it, because from that well they were accustomed to water the droves -- and there was a great stone over the mouth of the well. When all the droves had been gathered there,
they rolled stone away from off the mouth of the well, and they watered the flocks, after they returned the stone over to the mouth of the well. to its place. So Jacob said to them -- "My brothers, from what place are you?" to which they said -- "We are from Haran." Then he said to them -- "Do you know Laban the grandson of Nahor?" to which they said --"We know him." At this he said to them -- "Is it all right with him?" In turn they said -- "It is all right. And here is Rachel his daughter coming with the sheep." And he went on to say -- "Why, is it yet full day. It is not the time for gathering the herds, Water the sheep, then go feed them." To this they said -- "We are not allowed to do so until all the droves are gathered and they actually roll away the stone from off the mouth of the well. Then we must water the sheep." While he was yet speaking with them, Rachel came with the sheep that belonged to her father, for she was a shepherdess. And it came about that when Jacob saw Rachel the daughter of Laban his mother's brother, Jacob immediately approached and rolled away the stone off the mouth of the well and watered the sheep of Laban his mother's brother. Then Jacob kissed Rachel and raised his voice and burst into tears. And Jacob began to tell Rachel that he was the brother of her father and that he was son of Rebekah. And she went running to telling her father. Now it came about that as soon as Laban heard the report about Jacob the son of his sister, he went running to meet him. Then he embraced him and kissed him and brought him on into the house. And he began to relate to Laban all these things. After that Laban said to him -- "You are indeed my bone and my flesh." So he went with him a full month. After that Laban said to Jacob -- "Are you my brother? and must serve me for nothing? Tell me, What are your wages to be? As it was, Laban had 2 daughters. The name of the older was Leah and the name of younger Rachel. But the eyes of Leah had no luster, whereas Rachel had become beautiful in form and beautiful of countenance (face, expression). And Jacob was in love with Rachel. So he said --"I am willing to serve you 7 years for Rachel your younger daughter." To this Laban said -- "It is better or me to give her to you than for me to giver her to another man. Keep dwelling with me." And Jacob proceeded to serve 7 years for Rachel, but in his eyes they proved to be like some few days because of his love for her. Then Jacob said to Laban -- "Give over my wife, because my days are up, and let me have relations with her." With that Laban gathered all the men of the place and made a feast. But it turned out that during the evening he resorted to taking Leah his daughter and bringing her to him that he might have relations with her. Moreover, Laban gave to her Zilpah his maidservant, even to Leah his daughter, as a maidservant. So it followed in the morning here it was Leah! Consequently he said to Laban -- "What is this you have done to me? Was it not for Rachel that I served with you? So why have you tricked me?" To this Laban said -- "It is not done ordinarily to do this way in our place, to give the younger woman before the 1stborn. Celebrate to
the full week of this woman. After that there shall be given to you also this other woman for the service that you can serve me for 7 years more." According Jacob did so and celebrated fully the week of this woman, after which he gave him Rachel his daughter as his wife. Besides Laban gave Bilhah his maidservant to Rachel to his daughter as maidservant. Then he had relations also with Rachel and also expressed more love for Rachel than for Leah, and he went serving with him for yet 7 years more. When God came to see that Leah was hated, HE opened her womb, but Rachel was barren. And Leah became pregnant and brought a son to birth and then called his name Reuben, for she said -- "It is because God has looked upon my wretchedness, in that my husband will begin to love me." And she became pregnant again and brought a son and then said --"It is because God has listened, in that I was hated so he gave me also this one." Hence she called his name Simeon. And she became pregnant again brought a son to birth and then said -- "Now this time my husband will join himself to me, because I have borne him 3 sons." His name therefore was called Levi. And she became pregnant once more and brought a son to birth and then said --"This time I shall laud (praise) God." She therefore called his name Judah. After that she left off giving birth. 30 Then Rachel came to see that she had borne nothing to Jacob, Rachel got jealous of her sister and began to say to Jacob-"Give me children or otherwise I shall be a dead woman." At this Jacob's anger burned against Rachel and he said -- "Am I in the place of God? Who has held back the fruit of belly from you?" So she said- -"Here is my slave girl Bilhah. Have relations with her, that she may give birth upon my knees and that I, even I may get children from her." With that she gave him Bilhah her maidservant as wife, and Jacob had relations with her. And Bilhah became pregnant and in time bore Jacob a son. Then Rachel said -- "God has acted as my judge and has listened to my voice, so that he gave me a son." That is why she called his name Dan. And Bilhah, Rachel's maidservant, became pregnant once more and in time bore a 2nd son to Jacob. Then Rachel said -- "With strenuous wrestlings I have wrestled with my sister. I also come off a winner!" So she called his name Naphtali. When Leah came to see that she had left off giving birth, she proceeded to take Zilpah, her maidservant and give her to Jacob as wife. In time Zilpah, Leah's maidservant, bore a son to Jacob. Then Leah said -- "With good fortune!" So she named him Gad. After that Zilpah, Leah's maidservant, bore a 2nd son to Jacob. then Leah said-- "With my happiness! For the daughters will certainly pronounce me happy." So she called his name Asher. Now Reuben went walking in the days of the wheat harvest and got to find mandrakes in the field. So he brought them to Leah his mother. Then Rachel said to Leah -- "Give me, please, some your son's mandrakes." At this she said to her -- "Is this a little thing, your
having taken my husband, with your now taking also my son's mandrakes?" So Rachel said --"For that reason he is going to lie down with you tonight in exchange for your son's mandrakes." When Jacob was coming from the field in the evening, Leah went on out to meet him and then said --"It is with me you are going to have relations, because I have hired you outright with my son's mandrakes." Accordingly he lay down with her that night. And God heard and answered Leah and she became pregnant and in time bore to Jacob a 5th son. Then Leah said -- "God has given me a hireling's (laborer's wages} because I have given my maidservant to my husband." So she called his name Issachar. And Leah became pregnant once more and in time bore a 6th son to Jacob. Then Leah said -- "God has endowed me, yes, me, with a good endowment. At last my husband will tolerate me, because I have borne him 6 sons." So she called his name Zebulun. And after that she bore a daughter and then called her name Dinah. Finally God remembered Rachel, and God heard and answered her in that she opened her womb. And she became pregnant and brought a son to birth. Then she said -- "God has taken away my reproach!" So she called his name Joseph, saying -- "God is adding another son to me!" And it followed that when Rachel had given birth to Joseph, Jacob immediately said to Laban -- "Send me away that I may go to my place and to my country. Give over my wives and my children, for whom I have served with you, that I may go -- for you yourself must know my service which I have rendered you." Then Laban said to him -- "If, now, I have found favor in your eyes -- I have taken the omens to the effect that God is blessing me due to you." And he added -- "Stipulate (Specify) your wages to me and I will give them." So he said to him -- "You yourself must know how I have served you and how your herd has fared with me -- that it was little that you actually had before my coming, and it went expanding to a multitude, in that God blessed you since I stepped in. So now when am I to do something for my own house?" then he said -- "What shall I give you?" And Jacob went on to say -- "You will give me nothing whatsoever! If you will do this thing for me, I shall resume shepherding your flock. I shall continue guarding it. I will pass among your whole flock today. You set aside from there every sheep speckled and with color patches, every dark brown sheep among the young rams and any color patched and speckled one among the she goats. Hereafer such must be my wages. And my rightdoing must answer for me on whatever future day you may come to look over my wages -- every one that is not speckled and color patched among the she goats and dark brown among the young rams is something stolen if it is with me." To this Laban said -- "Why, that is fine! Let it be according to your word." Then he set aside on that day he goats and striped and color patched and all the she goats speckled and color patched, every one in which there was any white and every one dark brown among the young rams, but he gave them over into the hands of his sons. After that he set a distance of 3 days journey between himself and Jacob, and Jacob
was shepherding the flocks of Laban that remained over. Then Jacob took for his use staffs still moist of the storax tree and of the almond tree and peeled spots by laying bare white places which were upon the staffs. Finally the staffs that he had peeled he placed in front of the flock, in the gutters, in the water drinking troughs, where the flocks would come to drink, that they might get into a heat before them when they came to drink. Consequently, the flock would get in heat before the staffs and the flocks would produce striped, specked and color patched ones. And Jacob separated the young rams and then turned the faces of the flocks ot the striped ones and all the dark ones among the flocks of Laban. And it always occurred that whenever the robust flocks would get in heat, Jacob would locate the staffs in the gutters before the eyes of the flocks, that they might get in heat by the staffs. But when the flocks showed feebleness he would not locate them there. So the feeble ones always came to be Laban's, but the robust ones Jacob's. And the man went on increasing more and more, and great flocks and maidservants and menservants and camels and asses came to be his. 31 In time he got to hear the words of the sons of Laban, saying --"Jacob has taken everything that belonged to our father -- and from what belonged to our father he has amassed all his wealth." When Jacob would look at the face of Laban, here it was not with him as formerly. Finally God said to Jacob -- "Return to the land of your fathers and to your relatives, and I shall continue with you." Then Jacob sent and called Rachel and Leah, out to the field to his flock, and he said to them -- "I am seeing the face your father, that he is not the same toward me as formerly -- but the God of my father has proved to be with me. And you yourselves certainly know that with all my power I have served your father. And your father has trifled with me and he has changed my wages 10 times, but God has not allowed him to do me harm. If on the one hand he would say -- "The speckled ones will become your wages,' then the whole flock produced speckled ones --but on the other hand, he would say, "The striped ones will become your wages', then the whole flock produced striped one. So God kept taking the herd of your father away and giving it to me. At last it came about at the time when the flock got in heat that I raised my eyes and saw a sight in a dream and here the he goats springing upon the flock were striped, speckled and spotty. Then the angel of the true God said to me in the dream, 'Jacob!' to which I said, 'Here I am.' And he continued, 'Raise your eyes, please, and see all the he goats springing upon the flock are striped, specked and spotty, for I have seen all that Laban is doing to you. I am the true God of Bethel, where you anointed a pillar and where you vowed a vowed a vow to me. Now get up, go out of this land and return to the land of your birth.'" At this Rachel and Leah answered and said to him -- "Is there share of inheritance for us anymore in the house of
our father?" Are we not really considered as foreigners to him since he has sold us, so that he keeps eating continually even from the money given for us? For all the riches that God has taken away from our father are ours and our children's. So now everything God has said to you do." Then Jacob got up and lifted his children and his wives onto the camels -- and he began driving all his herd and all the goods that he had accumulated, the herd of his acquisition that he had accumulated in Paddanaram, in order to go to Isaac his father to the land of Canaan. Now Laban had gone to shear his sheep. Meantime Rachel stole the teraphim (shrine) that belonged to her father. So Jacob outwitted Laban the Syrian, because he did not told him that he was running away. And he proceeded to run away and to get up cross the River, he and all he had. After that he directed his face to the mountainous region of Gilead. Later, on the 3rd day, it was told to Laban that Jacob had run away. With that he took his brothers with him and went chasing after him for a distance of 7 days' journey and caught up with him in the mountainous region of Gilead. Then God came to Laban the Syrian in a dream by night and said to him -- "Watch yourself that you do not go speaking either good or bad with Jacob." So Laban approached Jacob, as Jacob had pitched his tent in the mountain and Laban had encamped his brothers in the mountainous region of Gilead. Then Laban said to Jacob -- "What have you done, in that you resorted to outwitting me and driving my daughters off like captives taken by the sword? Why did you have to run away secretly, outwit me and not tell me, that I might send you away rejoicing and with songs, with tambourine and with harp? And you did not give me a chance to kiss my children and my daughters. Now you have acted foolishly. It is in the power of my hand to do harm to you people, but the God of your father talked to me last night, saying, 'Watch yourself against speaking either good or bad with Jacob.' While you have actually gone now because you have been yearning intensely for the house of your father, why, though, have you stolen my gods (shrine)?" In answer Jacob proceeded to say to Laban -- "It was because I was afraid. For I said to myself, 'You might tear your daughters away from me.' Whoever it is with whom you may find your gods, let them not live. Before our brothers, examine for yourself what is with me and take them for yourself." But Jacob did not know Rachel had stolen them. So Laban went on into the tent of Jacob and into the tent of Leah and into the tent of the 2 slave girls, but did not find them. Finally he went out of Leah's tent and went on into the Rachel's tent. Now Rachel had taken the teraphim, and she resorted to putting them in the woman's saddle basket of the camel, and she kept sitting upon them. So Laban went feeling through the whole tent, but did not find them. Then she said to her father -- "Do not let anger glean in the eyes of my lord, because I am not able to get up before you, for customary thing with women is upon me." So he searched on carefully, but did not find the teraphim. And Jacob became angry and began to quarrel with Laban, and in answer Jacob went
on to say to Laban -- "What is the revolt on my part, what the sin of mine, as a reason why you have hotly pursued after me? Now that you have felt through all my goods, what of all the goods of your house have you found? Put it here in front of my brothers and your brothers, and let them decide between us 2. These 20 years I have been with you. Your female sheep and your she goats did not suffer abortions, and the rams of your flock I never ate. Any animals torn in pieces I did not bring to you. I myself would stand the loss of it. Whether one was stolen by day or was stolen by night, you would put in a claim for it from my hand. It has been my experience that by day the heat consumed me and the cold by night, and sheep would flee from my eyes. This makes 20 years for me in your house. I have served you 14 years for your flock, and you kept changing my wages 10 times. If the God of my father, the God of Abraham and the Dread of Isaac, had not proved on my side, you would now have sent me away empty handed! My wretchedness and the toil of my hands God has seen, and so he reproved you last night." Then Laban in answer said to Jacob -- "The daughters are my daughters and the children are my children and the flock my flock, and everything you are looking at is mine and my daughters.' What can I do against these today or against their children whom they have borne? And now, come, let us conclude a covenant (relationship, promise), I and you, and it must serve as a witness between me and you." According to Jacob took a stone and set it up as pillar. Then Jacob said to his brothers -- "Pick up the stones!" And they went taking stones and making a heap. After that they ate there on the heap. And Laban began calling it Jegarsahadutha but Jacob called it Galeed. And Laban proceeded to say -- "This heap is a witness between me and you today." That is why he called its name Galeed, and The Watchtower, because he said -- "Let Jehovah keep watch between me and you when we are situated unseen the one from the other. If you go afflicting my daughters and if you go to taking wives in addition to my daughters, there is no man with us. See! God is a witness between me and you." And Laban went on to say to Jacob -- "Here is this heap and here is the heap and the pillar that I have erected between me and you. This heap is a witness, and the pillar is something that bears witness, that I will not pass this heap against you and that you will not pass this heap and this pillar against me for harm. Let the god of Abraham and the god of Nahor judge between us, the god of their father." But Jacob swore by Dread of his father Isaac. After that Jacob sacrificed a sacrifice in the mountain and invited his brothers to eat bread and passed the night in the mountain. However, Laban got up early in the morning and kissed his children and his daughters and blessed them. Then Laban got on his way that he might return to his own place. 32 And as for Jacob, he got on his way, and the angels of God now met up with him. Immediately Jacob said, when he saw them -- "The camp of God this is!" Hence he called the name of that place Mahanaim. Then Jacob sent messengers ahead of him to Esau his
brother to land of Seir, the field of Edom, and he commanded them, saying -- "This is what you will say to my lord, to Esau. 'This is what your servant Jacob has said -- "With Laban I have resided as an alien and I have stayed for a long time till now. And I have come to have bulls and asses, sheep, and menservants and maidservants, and I would like to send to notify my lord, that I may find favor in your eyes."'" In time the messengers returned to Jacob, saying -- "We got to your brother Esau, and he is also on his way to meet you, and 400 men with him." And Jacob became very much afraid and grew anxious. So he divided the people who were with him, and the flocks and the cattle and the camels into 2 camps, and he said -- "If Esau should come to the one camp and assault it, then there is certain to be a camp remaining to make an escape." After Jacob said -- "O God of my father Abraham and God of my father Isaac, O Jehovah, you who are saying to me, 'Return to your land and to your relatives and I will deal with you.' I am unworthy of all the loving-kindnesses and of all the faithfulness that you have exercised toward your servant, for with but my staff I crossed this Jordan and now I have become 2 camps. Deliver me, I pray you, from my brother's hand, from Esau's hand, because I am afraid of him that he may come and certainly assault me, mother together with children. And you, you have said -- 'Unquestionably I shall deal well with you and I will constitute your seed like the grains of sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude.'" And he kept lodging there on that night. And from what came to his hand he proceeded to take a gift for Esau his brother -- 200 she- goats, 20 he- goats, 200 female sheep and 20 rams, 30 camels giving suck and their young ones, 40 cows and 10 bulls, 20 she-asses and 10 full-grown asses. Then he handed over to his servants one drove after another by itself and repeatedly said to his servants -- "Cross over ahead of me, and you are to set an interval between drove and drove." Further he commanded the 1st one, saying -- "In case that Esau my brother should meet you and ask you, saying, 'To whom do you belong, and where are you going and to whom do these ahead of you belong?' Then you must say, 'To your servant, to Jacob. A Gift it is, sent to my lord, to Esau, and look! he himself is also behind us.'" And he went on to command also the 2nd, also the 3rd, also all those following the droves saying-- "According to this word you are to speak to Esau on your encountering him. And must say also -- 'Here is your servant Jacob behind us,'" For he said to himself -- "I may appease him by gift going ahead of me, and afterward I shall see his face. Perhaps he will give a kindly reception." So the gift went crossing over ahead of him, but he himself lodged that night in the camp. Later during the night he rose and took his 2 wives and his 2 maidservants and his 11 young sons and crossed over the ford of Jabbok. So he took them and brought them over the torrent valley, and he brought over what he had. Finally Jacob was left by himself. Then a man began to grapple with him until the dawn ascended. When he got to
see that he had not prevailed over him, then he touched socket of his thigh joint -- and the socket of Jacob's thigh joint got out of place during his grappling with him. After that he said-- "Let me go, for the dawn has ascended." To this he said -- "I am not going to let you go until you 1st bless me." So he said to him -- "What is your name?" to which he said, "Jacob." Then he said, "Your name will no longer be called Jacob but Israel, for you have contended with God and with men so that you last prevailed." In turn Jacob inquired and said -- "Tell me, please, your name." However he said -- "Why is it that you inquire for my name?" With that he blessed him there. Hence Jacob called the name of the place Peniel, because to quote him, "I have seen God face to face and yet my soul was delivered." And the sun began to flash upon him as soon as he passed by Penuel, but he was limping upon his thigh. That is why sons of Israel are not accustomed to eat the sinew of the thigh nerve, which is on the socket of the thigh joint, down to this day, because he touched the socket of Jacob's thigh joint by the sinew of the thigh nerve. 33 In time Jacob raised his eyes and looked, and here Esau saw coming and with him 400 men. Consequently he divided off the children to Leah and to Rachel and to 2 maidservants, and he put maidservants and their children foremost and Leah and her children after them and Rachel and Joseph to the rear of them. And he himself passed on ahead of them and proceeded to bow down to the earth several times until he got near his brother. And Esau went running to meet him, and he began to embrace him and fall upon his neck and kiss him, and they burst into tears. Then he raised his eyes and saw the women and the children and said -- "Who are these with you?" to which he said -- "The children with whom God has favored your servant." At that the maidservants came forward, and her children, and bowed down --and Leah too came forward and her children, and they bowed down, and afterward Joseph came forward, and Rachel, and they bowed down. He now said -- "What do you mean by all this camp of travelers that I have met?" To this he said -- "In order to find favor in the eyes of my lord." Then Esau said -- "I have a great many, my brother. Let continue yours what is yours." However, Jacob said -- "No, please. If now, I have found a favor in your eyes, then you must take my gift at my hand, because in harmony with its purpose I have seen your face as though seeing God's face in that you received me with pleasure." Take, please, the gift conveying my blessing which was brought to you, because God has favored me and because I have everything." And he continued to urge him, so that he took it. Later on he said -- "Let us pull out and go, and let me go in advance of you." But he said to him -- "My lord is aware that the children are delicate and sheep and cattle that are giving suck in my charge, and should they drive too quickly for one day, then the whole flock will certainly die. Let my lord, please, pass on ahead of his servant, but may I myself continue the journey at my leisure according to the pace of the livestock that is before me and according to the pace of the children until
I shall come to my lord at Seir." Then Esau said -- "Let me, please, put at your disposal some of the people who are with me." To this he said -- "Why this? Let me find favor the eyes of my lord." So on that day Esau turned back on his way to Seir. And Jacob pulled out for Succoth, and he proceeded to build himself a house and for his herd he made booths. That was why he called the name of the place Succoth. In time Jacob came safe and sound to the city of Shechem, which is in the land of Canaan, while he was coming from Paddanaram -- and he pitched camp in front of the city. Then he acquired tract of the field where he pitched his tent at the hand of the sons of Hamor the father of Shechem, for a 100 pieces of money. After that he set up there an altar
and called it God the God of Israel. 34 Now Dinah daughter of Leah, whom she had borne to Jacob, used to go out to see the daughters of the land. And Shechem the son of Hamor the Hivite, a chieftain of the land, got to see her and then took her lay down with her and violated her. And his soul began to cling to Dinah the daughter of Jacob, and he fell in love with the young woman and kept speaking persuasively to the young woman. Finally Shechem said to Hamor his father -- "Get me this young lady as a wife." But Jacob heard that he had defiled Dinah his daughter. His sons happened to be with his herd in the field -- and Jacob kept silent until they came in. Later Hamor, Shechem's father, went out to Jacob to speak with him. And the sons of Jacob came in from the field as soon as they heard of it -- and the men became hurt in their feelings and they grew very angry, because he had committed a disgraceful folly against Israel in lying down with Jacob's daughter, whereas nothing like that ought to be done. And Hamor proceeded to speak to them, saying -- "As for Shechem my son, his soul is attached to your daughter. Give her, please, to him as a wife, and form marriage alliances with us, and our daughters you are able to take for yourselves. And with us you may dwell, and the land will become available for you. Dwell and carry on business in it and get settled in it." Then Shechem said to her father and to her brothers, "Let me find favor in your eyes, and whatever you will say to me I shall give it. Raise very high the marriage money and gift imposed on me, and I stand willing to give according to what you may say to me -- only give me the young woman as a wife." And Jacob's sons began to answer Shechem and Hamor his father with deceit and to speak so because he had defiled Dinah their sister. And they went on to say to them -- "We cannot possibly do such a thing, to give our sister to a man who has a foreskin, because that is a reproach to us. Only on this condition can we give consent to you, that you become like us, by every male or yours getting circumcised. Then we shall certainly give our daughters to you, and your daughters we shall take for ourselves, and we shall certainly dwell with you and become one people. But if you do not listen to us to get circumcised, then we will take our daughters and go."
And their words seemed good in the eyes of Hamor and in the eyes of Shechem, Hamor's son, and the young man did not delay to perform the condition, because he did not find delight in Jacob's daughter and he was not the most honorable of the whole house of his father. So Hamor and Shechem his son went to the gate of their city and began to speak to the men of their city, saying -- "These men are peace loving toward us. Hence let them dwell in the land and carry on business in it, as the land is quite wide before them. Only on this condition will be the men give us their consent to dwell with us so as to become one people, that every male of ours gets circumcised just the way they are circumcised. Then their possessions and their wealth and all their livestock, will they not be ours? Only let us give them our consent so they may dwell with us." Then all those going out by the gate of his city listened to Hamor and to Shechem his son, and all the males got circumcised, all those going out by the gate of his city. However, it came about that on the 3rd day, when they got to be acting, the 2 sons of Jacob, Simeon and Levi, brothers of Dinah, proceeded to take each one his sword and to go unsuspectedly to the city and kill every male. And Hamor and Shechem his son they killed with the edge of sword. Then they took Dinah from out of Shechem's house and went on out. The other sons of Jacob attacked the fatally wounded men and went plundering (ransacking) the city, because they had defiled her sister. Their flocks and their herds and their asses and what was in the city and what was in the field they took. And all their means of maintenance and all their little children and their wives they carried off captives, so that they plundered all that was in the houses. At this Jacob said to Simeon and Levi -- "You have brought ostracism upon me in making me a stench to the inhabitants of the land, with the Canaanites and Perizzites -- whereas I am few in number, and they will certainly gather together against me and assault me and I and my house." In turn they said -- "Ought anyone treat our sister like a prostitute?" 35 After that God said to Jacob -- "Rise, go up to Bethel and dwell there, and make an altar to the true God who appeared to you when you were running away from Esau your brother." Then Jacob said to his household and who were with him -- "Put away the foreign gods and cleanse yourselves and change your mantles, and let us rise and go up to Bethel. And there I shall make an altar to the true God who answered me in the day of distress in that he proved to be with me in the way that I have gone." So they gave Jacob all the foreign gods that were in their hands and the earrings that in their ears, and Jacob hid them under the big tree that was close by Shechem. After that they pulled away, and the terror of God came to be upon the cities that they did not chase after the sons of Jacob. Eventually Jacob came to Luz, which is in the land of
Canaan, that is to say, Bethel, he and all the people who were wth him. Then he built an altar there and began to call the place Elbethel, because there the true God had revealed himself to him at the time of his running away from his brother. Later Deborah, the nursing woman of Rebekah died and was buried a the foot of Bethel under a massive tree. Hence he called its name Allonbacuth. God now appeared to Jacob once again during his coming from Paddanaram and blessed him. And God went on to say to him -- "Your name is Jacob. No longer is your name to be called Jacob, but Israel will you name become." And he began to call his name Israel. And God said further to him -- "I am God Almighty. Be fruitful and become many. Nations and a congregation of nations will proceed out of you, and kings will come out of your loins. As for the land that I have given to Abraham and Isaac, to you I shall give it, and to your seed after you I shall give the land." Consequently Jacob stationed a pillar in the place where he had spoken to him, a pillar of stone, and he poured a drink offering upon it and poured oil upon it. And Jacob continued to call the name of the place where God had spoken with him Bethel. Then they pulled away from Bethel. And while there was yet a good stretch of land before coming to Ephrath, Rachel proceeded to give birth, and it was going hard with her in making the delivery. But so it was that while she had difficulty in making the delivery the midwife said to her -- "Do not be afraid, for you will have this son also." And the result was that as her soul was going out (because she died) she called his name Benoni -- but his father called him Benjamin. Thus Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath, that is to say, Bethlehem. Hence Jacob stationed a pillar over her grave. This is the pillar of Rachel's grave to this day. After that Israel pulled away and pitched his tent a distance beyond the tower of Eder. And it came about while Israel was tabernacling in that land that once Reuben went and lay down with Bilhah his father's concubine, and Israel got to hear of it. So there came to be 12 sons of Jacob -- The sons by Leah were Jacob's 1stborn Reuben, and Simeon and Levi and Judah and Issachar and Zebulun. The sons by Rachel were Joseph and Benjamin. And the sons by Bilhah, Rachel's maidservant, were Dan and Naphtali. And the sons of Zilpah, Leah's maidservant, were Gad and Asher. These are Jacob's sons who were born to him in Paddanaram. At length Jacob came to Isaac his father in Mamre, to Kiriatharba, that is to say Hebron, where Abraham and also Isaac had resided as aliens. And the days of Isaac came to be a 180 years. And that Isaac expired and died and was gathered to his people, old and satisfied with days, and Esau and Jacob his son buried him. 36 This is history of Esau, that is to say, Edom. Esau took his wives from the daughters of Canaan -- Adah the daughter of Elon the Hittite and Oholibamah the
daughter of Anah, the granddaughter of Zibeon the Hivite, and Basemath,
Ishamel's daughter, sister of Nebaioth. And Jacob proceeded to bear Eliphaz to
Esau, and Basemath bore Reuel, and Oholibamah bore to Jeush and Jalam and Korah. These are the sons of Esau who were born to him in the land of Canaan. After that Esau took his wives and his sons and his daughters and all the souls of his house and his herd and all his other beasts and all his wealth, which he had accumulated in the land of Canaan, and went to a land away from Jacob his brother, because their goods become too great for them to dwell together and the land of their alien residences was not able to sustain them as a result of their herds. So Esau took up dwelling in the mountainous region of Seir. Esau is Edom. And this is history of Esau the father of Edom in the mountain region of Seir. These are the names of sons of Esau -- Eliphaz the son of Adah, Esau's wife -- Reuel the son of Basemath, Esau's wife. And the sons of Eliphaz came to be Teman, Omar, Zepho, Gatam and Kenaz. And Timna became the concubine of Eliphaz, Esau's son. In time she bore to Eliphaz Amalek. These are the sons of Adah, Esau's wife. The Sons of Reuel -- Nahath and Zerah, Shammah and Mizzah. These came to be the sons of Basemath, Esau's wife. And these came to be the sons of Oholibamah the daughter of Anah, and granddaughter of Zibeon, Esau's wife, in that she bore to Esau Jeush and Jalam and Korah. These were the sheiks (head of the family, tribe) of sons of Esau -- The sons of Eliphaz, Esau's 1stborn-- sheiks -- Teman, Omar, Zepho, Kenaz, Korah, Gatam, Amalek. Thsese are the sheiks of Eliphaz in the land of Edom. These are the sons by Adah. These are the sons of Reuel, Esau's son-- Sheiks-- Nahath, Zerah, Shammah and Mizzah. These are the sheiks of Reuel in the land of Edom. These are the sons by Basemath, Esau's wife. Finally these are the sons of Oholibamah, Esau's wife -- sheiks -- Jeush, Jalam, Korah. These are the sheiks of Oholibamah the daugther of Anah, Esau's wife. These are the sons of Esau, and these are their sheiks. He is Edom. These are the sons of Seir the Horite, the inhabitants of the land -- Lotan and Shobal and Zibeon and Anah and Dishon and Ezer and Dishan. These are the sheiks of Horite, the sons of Seir in the land of Edom. And the sons of Lotan came to be Hori and Hemam and Lotan's sister was Timna. And these are the sons of Shobal - Alvan and Manahath and Ebal, Shepho and Onam. And these are the sons of Zibeon -- Aiah and Anah. This is the Anah who found the hot springs in the wilderness while he was tending the asses for Zibeon his father. And these are the children of Anah -- Dishon and Oholibamah the daughter of Anah. And these are the sons of Dishon -- Hemdan and Eshban and Ithran and Cheran.
These are the sons of Ezer -- Bilhan and Zaavan and Akan. These are the sons of Dishan. Uz and Aran. These are the sheiks of the Horite -- Sheiks -- Lotan, Shobal, Zibeon, Anah, Dishon, Ezer, Dishan. And these are the sheiks of the Horite according to their sheiks in the land of Seir. Now these are the kings who reigned in the land of Edom before any king reigned over the sons of Israel. And Bela son of Beor procceded to reign in Edom, and the name city was Dinhabah. When Bela died, Jobab son of Zerah from Bozrah began to reign instead of him. When Jobab died, Husham from the land of the Temanites began to reign instead of him. When Husham died, Hadad son of Bedad, who defeated the Midianites in the field of Moab, began to reign instead of him, and the name of his city was Avith. When Hadad died, Samlah from Masrekah began to reign instead of him. When Samlah died, Shaul from Rehoboth by the River began to reign instead of him. When Shaul died, Baalhanan son of Achbor began to reign instead of him. When Baalhanan son of Achbor died, Hadar began to reign instead of him -- and the name of his wife was Mehetabel the daughter of Matred the daughter of Mezahab. So these are the name of the sheiks of Esau according to their families, according to their places, by their names -- Sheiks-- Timna, Alvah, Jetheth, Oholibamah, Elah, Pinon, Kenaz, Teman, Mibzar, Magdiel, Iram. These are the sheiks of Edom according to their dwellings in the land of their possession. This is Esau the father of Edom. 37 And Jacob continued to dwell in the land of the alien residences of his father, in the land of Canaan. This is the history of Jacob. Joseph, when 17 years old, happened to be tending sheep with his brothers among the flock, and, being but a boy, he was with the sons of Bilhah and the sons of Zilpah, the wives of his father. And Israel loved Joseph more than all his other sons, because he was the son of his old age -- and he had a long, striped shirtlike garment made for him. When his brothers came to see that their father loved him more than all his brothers, they began to hate him, and they were not able to speak peacefully to him. Later on Joseph had a dream and told it to his brothers, and they found further reason to hate him. And he went on to say to them -- "Listen, please, to this dream I have dreamed. Well, here we were binding sheaves in the middle of the field, when here my sheaf got up and also stood erect and here your sheaves proceeded to encircle and bow down to my sheaf." And his brothers began to say to him --"Are you going to be king over us for certain? or, Are you going to dominate over us for certain?" So they found fresh reason to hate him over his dreams and his words. After that he had still another dream, and he related it to his brothers and said -- "Here I have had a dream once more, and here the sun and the moon
and 11 stars were bowing down to me." Then he related it to his father as well as his brothers, and his father began to rebuke him and say to him -- "What does this dream that you have dreamed mean? Am I and also your mother and your brothers for certain going to come and bow down to the earth to you?" And his brothers grew jealous of him, but his father observed the saying. His brothers now went to feed the flock of their father close by Shechem. After a while Israel said to Joseph -- "Your brothers are tending flocks close by Shechem, are they not? Come, and let me send you to them." At this he said to him -- "Here I am!" So he said to him -- "Go, please. See whether your brothers are safe and sound, and bring me back word." With that he sent him away from low plain of Hebron, and he went on toward Shechem. Later a man found him and here he was wandering in a field. Then the man inquired of him, saying -- "What are you looking for?" To this he said -- "It is my brothers I am looking for. Tell me, please, Where are they tending the flocks?" And the man continued -- "They have pulled away from here, because I heard them saying, 'Let us go to Dothan.'" So Joseph kept on after his brothers and found them at Dothan. Well, they caught sight of him from a distance, and before he could get close to them they began plotting cunningly against him to put him to death. So they said to one another -- "Look! Here comes that dreamer! And now come and let us kill him and pitch him into one of the waterpits -- and we must say a vicious wild beast devoured him. Then let us see what will become of his dreams." When Reuben heard this he tried to deliver him out of their hand. So he said -- "Let us not strike his soul fatally. And Reuben went on to say to them -- "Do not spill his blood. Pitch him into this waterpit which is in the wilderness and do not lay a violent hand upon him." His purpose was to deliver him out of their hand in order to return him to his father. So it came about that as soon as Joseph came to his brothers, they went stripping Joseph of his long garment, even the long striped garment that was upon him -- after which they took him and pitched him into the waterpit. At the time the pit was empty -- there was no water in it. Then they sat down to eat bread. When they raised their eyes and took a look, why, here was a caravan of Ishamelites that was coming from Gilead, and their camels were carrying labdanum and balsam and resinous bark, on their way to take it down to Egypt. At this Judah said to his brothers -- "What profit would there be in case we killed our brother and did cover over his blood? Come and let us sell him to Ishmaelites, and do not let our hand be upon him. After all, he is our brother, our flesh." So they listened to their brother. Now men, Midianite merchants, were passing by. Hence they drew and lifted up Joseph out of the waterpit and then sold Joseph to the Ishmaelites for 20 silver pieces. Eventually these brought Joseph into Egypt. Later Reuben returned to the waterpit and here Joseph was not in the waterpit. Consequently he ripped his garments apart. When he returned to
his other brothers he exclaimed -- "The child is gone! And I -- where am I really to go?" However, they took Joseph's long garment and slaughtered a male goat and repeatedly dipped the long garment in the blood. After that they sent the long striped garment had it brought to their father and said -- "This is what we found. Examine, please, whether it is your son's long garment or not." And he went examining it and exclaimed -- "It is my son's long garment! A vicious wild beast must have devoured him! Joseph is surely torn to pieces!" With that Jacob ripped his mantles apart and put sackcloth upon his hips and carried on mourning over his son for many days. And all his sons and all his daughters kept rising up to comfort him, but he kept refusing to take comfort and saying -- "For I shall go down mourning to my son into Sheol!" And his father continued weeping for him. However, the Midianites sold him into Egypt to Potiphar a court official of Pharaoh, the chief of the bodyguard. 38 Now in the meantime it came about that when Judah went down from his brothers and he pitched his tent near a man, an Adullamite, and his name was Hirah. And there Judah got to see a daughter of certain Canaanite, and his name was Shua. So he took her and had relations with her. And she became pregnant. Later she bore a son named Er. Again she became pregnant again. In time she bore a son and called his name Onan. And yet another time she went on to bear a son then called his name Shelah. Now he happened to be in Achzib at the time she bore him. In time Judah took a wife for Er his 1st born, and her name was Tamar. But Er, Judah's 1stborn, proved to be bad in the eyes of God, hence God put him to death. In view of that Judah said to Onan -- "Have relations with your brother's wife and perform brother -in-law marriage with her and raise up offspring for your brother." But Onan knew that the offspring would not become his -- and it occurred that when he did have relations with his brother's wife he wasted his semen on the earth so as not to give offspring to his brother. Now what he did was bad in the eyes of God -- hence he put him also to death. So Judah said to Tamar his daughter in law -- "Dwell as a widow in the house of your father until Shelah my son grows up." For he said to himself -- "He too may die like his brothers." Accordingly Tamar went and continued to dwell at her own father's house. Thus the days became many and the daughter of Shua, Judah's wife, died --and Judah kept the period of mourning. After that he went up to the shearers of his sheep, he and Hirah his companion the Adullamite to Timna. Then it was told to Tamar -- "Here your father-in-law is going up to Timna to shear his sheep." With that she removed the garments of her widowhood from her and covered herself with a shawl and veiled herself and sat down at the entrance of Enaim, where is along the road to Timna. For she saw that Shelah had grown up and yet she had not been given as wife to him. When Judah caught sight of her, he at once took her for a harlot, because she had covered her face. So he turned aside to her by the road and said -- "Allow me, please, to have
relations with you." For he did not know that she was his daughter- in law. However, she said -- "What will you give me that you may have relations with me?" To this he said -- "I myself shall send a kid of the goats from the herd." But she said -- "Will you give a security until you send it?" And he continued -- "What is the security that I shall give you?" to which she said -- "Your seal ring and your cord and your rod that is in your hand." Then he gave them to her and had relations with her, so that she became pregnant by him. After that she got up and went and removed her shawl off her and clothed herself with the garments of her widowhood. And Judah proceeded to send a kid of the goats by the land of his companion the Adullamite in order to get back the security from the hand of the woman, but he never found her. And he went inquiring of the men of her place, saying --"Where is that temple prostitute in Enaim along the road?" But they kept saying -- "No temple prostitute has ever been in this place.'" Finally he returned to Judah and said -- "I never found her, besides, the men of the place said -- 'No temple prostitute has ever been in this place.'" So Judah said -- "Let her take them for herself in order that we may not fall into contempt. At any rate. I have sent this kid, but you -- you never found her." However, about 3 months later it happened that it was told to Judah -- "Tamar your daughter in law has played a harlot, and here she is also pregnant by her harlotry." At that Judah said -- "Bring her out and let her be burned." As she was being brought out she herself sent to her father -in law, saying -- "By the man to whom these belong I am pregnant." And she added -- "Examine, please, to whom these belong, the seal ring and the cord and the rod." Then Judah examined them and said -- "She is more righteous than I am, for the reason I did not give her to Shelah my son." And he had no further interc*urse with her after that. Now it developed that in the time of her giving birth, why, here there were twins in her belly. Further, it turned out that when she was giving birth one extended his hand, and the midwife at once took and tied a scarlet piece about his hand, saying -- "This one came out 1st." Finally it developed that as soon as he drew back his hand, why, here his brother came out, so that she exclaimed -- "What do you mean by this, that you have produced a perineal rupture for yourself?" Hence his name was called Perez. And afterward his brother upon whose hand the scarlet piece was came out and his name came to be called Zerah. 39 As for Joseph, he was brought down to Egypt, and Potiphar, a court official for of Pharaoh, the chief of the body guard, an Egyptian, got to buy him from the hand of the Ishamelites who had brought him down there. But God proved to be with him and Joseph, so he turned out a successful man and came to be over the house of his master, the Egyptian. And his master got to see that God was with him that everything he was doing God was making turn out successful in his hand. And Joseph kept finding favor in his eyes and waited upon him continually, so that he appointed him over his house, and all that was his he gave to his hand. And it followed that
from the time he appointed him over his house and in charge of all that was his
God kept blessing the house of the Egyptian due to Joseph, and God's blessing came to be upon all that he had in the house and the field. Finally he left everything that was his in Joseph's hand -- and he did not know what was with him at all except the bread he was eating. Moreover, Joseph grew to beautiful in form and beautiful in appearance. Now after these things it came about that the wife of his master began to raise her eyes toward Joseph and say -- "Lie down with me." But he would refuse and would say to his master's wife -- "Here, my master does not know what is with me in the house, and everything he has he has given to my hand. There is no one greater than I am, and he has not withheld from me anything at all except you, because you are his wife. So how could I commit this great badness and actually sin against God?" So it turned out that as she spoke to Joseph day after day he never listened to her to lie alongside her, to continue with her. But it happened that on this day as other days he went into the house to do his business, and there was none of the men of the house there in the house. Then she grabbed hold of him by his garment, saying -- "Lie down with me!" But he left his garment in her hand and took to flight and went on outside. So it occurred that as soon as she saw that he had left his garment in her hand that he might flee outside, she began to cry out to men of her house and to say to them -- "Look! He brought to us a man, a Hebrew, to make us a laughingstock. He came to lie down with me, but I began to cry out at the top of my voice. And it followed that as soon as he heard that I raised my voice and began crying out, he then left his garment beside me and took to flight and went on outside." After that she kept his garment laid up beside her until his master came to his house. Then she spoke to him according to these words, saying -- "The Hebrew servant whom you brought to us came to me to make a laughingstock. But it followed that as soon as I raised my voice and began to cry out, he then left his garment beside me and fleeing outside." The result was that as soon as his master heard the words of his wife which she spoke to him, saying -- "like this and this your servant did to me," his anger blazed. So Joseph's master took him and gave him over to the prison house, the place where the prisoners of the king were kept under arrest, and he continued there in the prison house. However, God continued with Joseph and kept extending loving kindness to him and granting him to find favor in the eyes of the chief officer of the prison house. So the chief officer of the prison house gave over into Joseph's hand all the prisoners who were in the prison house -- and everything that they were doing there he proved to be the one having it done. The chief officer of the prison house was looking after absolutely nothing that was in his hand, because God was with Joseph and what he was doing-- God was making it turn out successful. 40 Now after these things it came about that the cupbearer of the king of Egypt and the baker sinned against their
lord the king of Egypt. And Pharaoh grew indignant at his 2 officers, at the chief of the cupbearers and chief of the bakers. So he committed them to the jail of the house of the chief of the bodyguard, to the prison house, the place where Joseph was a prisoner. Then the chief of the bodyguard assigned Joseph to be with them that he might wait upon them -- and they continued in jail for some days. And both of them proceeded to dream a dream, each one his own dream with its own interpretation, the cupbearer and the baker who belong to the king of Egypt who were prisoners in the prison house. When Joseph came in to them in the morning and saw them, why, there they were looking dejected. And he began to inquire of the officers of the Pharaoh who were with him in the jail of his master's house, saying -- "For what reason are your faces are gloomy today?" At this they said to him -- "We have dreamed a dream, and there is no interpreter with us." So Joseph said to them -- "Do not interpretations belong to God?" Relate it to me, please." And the chief of the cupbearers went on to relate his dream to Joseph and to say to him -- ""In my dream, why, here there was a vine before me. And on the vine there were 3 twigs, and it was apparently sprouting shoots. It's blossoms push forth. Its clusters ripened their grapes. And Pharaoh's cup was in my hand, and I proceeded to take the grapes and squeeze them out into Pharaoh's cup. After that I gave the cup into Pharaoh's hand." Then Joseph said to him -- "This is its nterpretation-- the 3 twigs are 3 days. In 3 days from now the Pharaoh will lift your head and he will certainly return you to your office -- and you will certainly give Pharaoh's cup into his hand, according to the former custom when you acted as his cupbearer. Nevertheless, you must keep me in your remembrance as soon as it gives well with you, and you must, please, perform loving kindness with me and mention me to Pharaoh, and you must get me out of this house. For I was in fact kidnapped from the land of the Hebrews -- and here also I have done nothing at all for which they should put me in prison hole." When the chief of the bakers saw that he had interpreted something good, he, in turn, said to Joseph -- "I too was in my dream, and here there were 3 baskets of white bread upon my head, and in the topmost basket there were all sorts of eatables for Pharaoh, the product of a baker, and there were fowls eating them out of the basket on top of my head." Then Joseph answered and said -- "This is the interpretation -- The 3 baskets were 3 days. In 3 days from now the Pharaoh will lift up your head from off you and will certainly hang you upon a stake -- and the fowls will certainly eat your flesh from off you." Now on the 3rd day it turned out to be Pharaoh's birthday, and he proceeded to make a feast for all his servants and to lift up the head of the chief of the cupbearers and the head of the chief of the bakers in midst of the servants. According he returned the chief of the cupbearers to his post of cupbearer, and he continued to give the cup into Pharaoh's hand. But the chief of the bakers he hung up, just
as Joseph had given them the interpretation. However, the chief of the cupbearer
did not remember Joseph and went on forgetting him. 41 And it came about at the end of 2 full years that Pharaoh was dreaming and here he was standing by the river Nile. And here ascending out of the river Nile were 7 cows beautiful in appearance and fat fleshed and feeding themselves among Nile grass. And here there were 7 other cows ascending after them out of the river Nile, ugly in appearance and thin fleshed, and they took their stand alongside the cows by the bank of the river Nile. Then the cows that were ugly in appearance and thin fleshed began to eat up the 7 cows that were beautiful in appearance and fat. At this Pharaoh woke up. However, he went back to sleep and dreamed a 2nd time. And here there were 7 ears of grain coming up on the stalk, fat and good. And here were 7 ears of grain, thin and scorched by the east wind -- growing up after them. And the thin ears of grain began to swallow up the 7 fat and full ears of grain. At this Pharaoh woke up and here it was a dream. And it developed in the morning that his spirit became agitated. So he sent and called all the magic practicing priests of Egypt and all the wise men, and Pharaoh went on to relate his dreams to them. But there was no interpreter of them for Pharaoh. Then the chief of the cupbearer spoke with Pharaoh, saying -- "My sins I am mentioning today. Pharaoh was indignant at his servant. So he committed me to the jail of the house of the chief of the bodyguard, both me and the chief of the bakers. After that we both dreamed a dream in the one night, both I and he. We dreamed each one his own dream with its own interpretation. And there was with us there a young man, a Hebrew, a servant of the chief of the bodyguard. When we related them to him, he proceeded to interpret our dreams to us. He interpreted each according to his dream. And it turned out that just as he had interpreted to us so it happened. Me he returned to my office, but him he hanged." And Pharaoh proceeded to send nd to call Joseph, that they might bring him quickly form the prison hole. Hence he shaved and changed his mantles clothes and went in to Pharaoh. Then Pharaoh said to Joseph -- "I have dreamed a dream, but there is no interpreter of it. Now I myself have heard it said about you that you can hear a dream and interpret it." At this Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying -- "I need not be considered! God will announce welfare to Pharaoh." And Pharaoh went on to speak to Joseph -- "In my dream here I was standing on the bank of the river Nile. And here ascending out the river Nile were 7 cows fat fleshed and beautiful to feed among the Nile grass. And here there were 7 other cows ascending after them, poor and very bad in form and thin fleshed. For badness I have not seen the like of them in all the land of Egypt. And the skinny and bad cows began to eat up the 1st 7 fat cows. So these came into their bellies, and yet it could not be known that they had come into their bellies, as their appearance was bad just as at the start. At that I woke up.
"After that I saw in my dream and here there were 7 ears of grain coming up on 1 stalk, full and good. And here there were 7 ears of grain shriveled, thin, scorched by the east wind, growing up after them. And the thin ears of grain began to swallow up the 7 good ears of grain. So I stated it to the magic practicing priests, but there was none telling me." Then Joseph said to Pharaoh -- "The dream of Pharaoh is but one. What the true God is doing he has told to the Pharaoh. The 7 good cows are years. Likewise the 7 good ears of grain are 7 years. The dream is but one. And the 7 skinny and bad cows that came up after them are 7 years -- and the 7 empty ears of grain, scorched by the east wind, will prove to be 7 years of famine. This is the thing that I have spoken to Pharaoh -- What the true God is doing he has caused the Pharaoh to see. "Here there are 7 years coming with great plenty in all the land of Egypt. But the 7 years of famine will certainly arise after them, and all the plenty in the land of Egypt will certainly be forgotten and the famine will simply consume the land. And the plenty once in the land will not be known as a result of that famine afterward, because it certainly will be severe. And the fact that the dream was repeated to Pharaoh 2wice means that the thing is firmly established on the part of the true God, and the true God is speeding to do it." So now let Pharaoh look for a man discreet and wise and set him over the land of Egypt. Let Pharaoh act and appoint overseers over the land, and he must take up 1/5 of the Egypt during 7 years of plenty. And let them collect all the foodstuffs of these coming good years, and let them pile up grain under Pharaoh's hand as foodstuffs in the cities, and they must safeguard it. And the foodstuffs must serve as a supply for the land for the 7 famine years, which will develop in the land of Egypt, in order that the land may not be cut off by the famine." Well, the thing proved to be good in the eyes of Pharaoh and of all his servants. So Pharaoh said to his servants --"Can another man be found like this one in whom the spirit of God is?" After that Pharaoh said to Joseph -- "Since God has caused you to know all this, there is no one as discreet and wise as you are. You will personally be over at my house, and all my people will obey you implicitly. Only as to the throne shall I be greater than you." And Pharaoh added to Joseph -- "See, I do place you over all the land of Egypt." With that Pharaoh removed his signet ring from his hand and put it upon Joseph's hand and clothed him with garments of fine linen and placed a necklace of gold about his neck. Moreover, he had him ride in the 2nd chariot of honor that he had, so that they should call out ahead of him, "Avrekh" thus putting him over all the land of Egypt. And Pharaoh further said to Joseph -- "I am Pharaoh, but without your authorization, no man may lift up his hand or foot in all the land of Egypt." After that Pharaoh called Joseph's name Zaphenathpaneah and gave him Asenath the daughter of Potiphera the priest of On as a wife. And Joseph began to go out over the land of Egypt. And Joseph
was 30 years old when he stood before Pharaoh the king of Egypt. Then Joseph went out from before Pharaoh and toured about in all the land of Egypt. And during the 7 years of plenty the land went on producing by the handfuls. He kept collecting all the foodstuffs of the 7 years that came upon the land of Egypt and he would put the foodstuffs in the cities. The foodstuffs of the field that was round about a city he put in the midst of it. And Joseph continued piling up grain in very great quantity, like the sand of the sea, until finally they gave up counting it, because it was without number. And before the year of the famine arrived there were born to Joseph 2 sons, whom Asenath the daughter of Potiphera the priest of On bore to him. So Joseph called the name of the 1stborn Manasseh, because, to quote him, "God has made me forget all my trouble and all the house of his father." And the name of the 2nd he called Ephraim, because, to quote him, "God has made me fruitful in land of my wretchedness." And the 7 years of the plenty that had obtained in the land of Egypt gradually ended, and, in turn, the 7 years of famine started to come, just as Joseph had said. And the Famine developed in all the lands, but in all the land of Egypt there was found bread. Finally all the land of Egypt became famished and the people began to cry out to Pharaoh for bread. Then Pharaoh said to all the Egyptians -- "Go to Joseph. Whatever he says to you, you are to do." And the famine obtained over all the surface of the earth. Then Joseph began to open up all the grain depositories that were among them and to sell to the Egyptians, as the famine got a strong grip on the land of Egypt. Moreover, people of all the earth came to Egypt to buy from Joseph, because the famine had a strong grip on all the earth. 42 Eventually Jacob got to see that there were cereals in Egypt. Then Jacob said to his sons -- "Why do you keep looking at one another?" And he added -- "Here I have heard that there are cereals in Egypt. Go down there and buy for us from there, that we may keep alive and not die off." Accordingly !0 brothers of Joseph went down to buy grain from Egypt. But Jacob did not send Benjamin, Joseph's brother, with his other brothers, because he said -- "Otherwise a fatal accident may befall him." So Israel's sons came along with the others who were coming to buy, because the famine existed in the land of Canaan. And Joseph was the man in power over the land. He was the one that did the selling to all the people of the earth. When Joseph got to see his brothers, he at once recognized them, but he made himself unrecognizable to them. So he spoke harshly with them and said to them -- "Where have come from?" to which they said -- "From the land of Canaan to buy foodstuffs." Thus Joseph recognized his brothers, but they themselves did not recognize him. Immediately Joseph remembered that he had dreamed respecting them, and he went on to say to them -- "You are spies! You have come to see the exposed condition of the land!" Then they said to him -- "No,
my lord, but your servants have come to buy foodstuffs. We are all of us sons of but one man. We are upright men. Your servants do not act as spies." But he said to them -- "Not so! Because you have come to see the exposed condition of the land!" At this they said -- "Your servants are 12 brothers. We are the sons of but one man in the land of Canaan -- and here the youngest is with our father today, whereas the other one is no more." However, Joseph said to them -- "It is what I have spoken to you, saying, 'You are spies!' By this you will be tested out. As Pharaoh lives, you will not go out of here except when your youngest brother comes here. Send one of you that he may get your brother while you have been bound, that your words may be tested out as the truth in your case. And if not, then, as Pharaoh lives, you are spies." With that he put them together in custody for 3 days. After that Joseph said to them on the 3rd day -- "Do this keep alive, I fear the true God. If you are upright, let one of your brothers be kept bound in your house of custody, but the rest of you go, take cereals for famine in your houses. Then you will bring your youngest brother to me, that your words may be found trustworthy -- and you will not die." And they proceeded to do so. And they began to say one to the other -- "Unquestionably we are guilty with regard to our brother, because we saw the distress of his soul when he implored compassion on our part, we did not listen. That is why this distress has come upon us." Then Reuben answered them, saying -- "Did not I say to you, 'Do not sin against the child, but you did not listen? And now his blood, here it is certainly asked back." As for them, they did not know that Joseph was listening, because there was an interpreter between them. Consequently he turned away from them and began to weep. Then he returned to them and spoke to them and took Simeon from them and bound him before their eyes. After that Joseph gave the command, and they went filling up their receptacles with grain. Also, they were to return the money of the men to each one's individual sack and give them provisions for the journey. Accordingly it was done so to them. So they loaded their cereals upon their asses and got on their way from there. When one opened his sack to give fodder to his ass at the lodging place, he got to see his money, and here it was in the mouth of his bag. At that he said to his brothers -- "My money has been returned and now here it is in my bag!" Then their hearts sank, so that they turned trembling to one another, saying -- "What is this that God has done to us?" At length they came to Jacob their father to the land of Canaan, and told him all the things that had befallen them, saying -- "The man who is the lord of the country spoke harshly with us, since he took us for men spying on the country. But we said to him, 'We are upright men. We do not act as spies. We are 12 brothers, the sons of our father. One is no more, and the youngest is today with our father in Canaan. But the man who is the lord of the country said to us, 'By this I am going to know you are upright -- Have one brother of yours stay with me.
Then you take something for the famine in your houses and go. And bring your youngest brother to me, that I may know that you are no spies but your are upright. Your brother I shall give back to you, and you may carry on business in the land." And it came about that when they were emptying their sacks here was each one's bundle of money in his sack. And they as well as their father got to see their bundles of money, and they became afraid. Then Jacob their father exclaimed to them -- "It is I you have bereaved! Joseph is no more and Simeon is no more, and Benjamin you are going to take! It is upon me that all these things have come!" But Reuben said to his father -- "My own 2 sons you may put to death if I do not bring him back to you. Give him over to my care, I shall be the one to return him to you." However, he said -- "My son will not go down with you men, because his brother is dead and he has been left by himself. If a fatal accident should befall him on the way on which you would go, then you would certainly bring down my gray hairs with grief to Sheol." 43 And the famine was severe in the land. And it came about that as soon as they had finished eating up the cereals they brought from Egypt, their father proceeded to say to them --"Return, buy a little food for us." Then Judah said to him -- "The man unmistakably bore witness to us, saying, 'You must not see my face again unless your brother is with you.' If you are sending our brother with us, we are willing to go down and buy food for you. But if you are not sending him, we shall not go down, because the man did say to us, 'You must not see my face again unless your brother is with you.'" And Israel exclaimed -- "Why did you have to do harm to me by telling the man you had another brother?" At this they said -- "The man directly inquired concerning us and our relatives, saying, 'Is your father yet alive? Do you have another brother? and we went on to tell him according to these facts. How could we know for certain that he would say, 'Bring, your brother down'?" Finally Judah said to Israel his father -- "Send the boy with me, that we may get up and go and that we may keep alive and not die off, both we and you and our little children. I shall be the one to be surety for him. Out of my hand you may exact the penality for him. If I fail to bring him to you and present him to you, then I shall have sinned against you for all time. But if we had not lingered around, we should by now have been there and back these 2 times." So Israel their father said to them -- "If, then, that is the case, do this -- Take the finest products of the land in your receptacles and carry them down to the man as a gift -- a little balsam, and a little honey, labdanum and resinous bark, pistachios nuts and almonds. Also, take double the money that was returned in the mouth of your bags you will take back in your hand. Maybe it was mistake. And take your brother and get up, return to the man. And may God Almighty give you pity before the man, that he may certainly release to you your other brother and Benjamin. But I, in case I must be bereaved, I shall certainly be bereaved!" Accordingly the men took this gift, and they took double the money in their hand and Benjamin. Then they rose and went their way down to Egypt.
and got to stand before Joseph. When Joseph saw Benjamin with them, he at once said to the man who was over his house -- "Take the men to the house and slaughter animals and make preparation, because the men are to eat with me at noon." Immediately the man did just as Joseph had said. So the man took the men to Joseph's house. But the men got afraid because they had been taken to Joseph's house, and they began to say -- "It is because of the money that we went back with us in our bags at the start that we are being brought here for them to fall upon us and attack us and to take us for slaves and also our asses!" Hence they approached the man who was over Joseph's house and spoke to him at the entrance of the house, and they said -- "Excuse us, my lord! We surely did come down at the start to buy food. But what occurred was that when we came to the lodging place and began opening our bags, why, here was the money in full weight. So we are returning it with our own hands. We have brought more money to buy food. We certainly do not know who placed our money in our bags. Then he said, "It is all right with you. Do not be afraid. Your God and God of your father gave you treasures in your bags. Your money came 1st to me." After that he brought out Simeon to them. Then the man brought men into Joseph's house and gave water that they might have their feet washed, and he gave fodder for their asses. And they proceeded to get the gift ready for Joseph's coming at noon, because they had heard that it was there they were going to eat bread. When Joseph went on into the house, and prostrated themselves to him to the earth. (Lay face down with arms stretched out at the sides to the earth). After this he inquired whether they were getting along well and said -- "Is your father, the aged man of whom you have spoken, getting along well? Is he still alive?" To this they said -- "Your servant our father is getting along well. He is still alive." Then they bowed down and prostrated themselves. When he raised his eyes and saw Benjamin his brother, the son of his mother, he went on to say -- "Is this your brother, the youngest one of whom you have spoken to me?" And he added -- "May God show you his favor, my son." Joseph was now in a hurry, because his inward emotions were excited toward his brother, So that he looked for a place to weep and he went into an interior room and gave way to tears there. After that he washed his face and went out kept control of himself and said -- "Set on the meal." And they proceeded to set it on for him by himself and for them by themselves -- for the Egyptians were not able to eat a meal with the Hebrews, because that is a detestable thing to Egyptians. And they were seated before him, the 1stborn according to his right as 1stborn, and the youngest according to his youngness -- and the men kept looking one other in amazement. And he kept having portions carried from before him to them, but he would increase Benjamin's portion 5 times the size of the portions of all the others. So they continued banqueting
and drinking with him to the full. 44 Later on he commanded the man who
was over his house, saying -- "Fill the bags of the men with food to the extent they are able to carry it and place the money of each one in the mouth of his bag. But you must place my cup, the silver cup, in the mouth of the bag of the youngest and money for the cereals." So he did according to the word of Joseph which he had spoken. The morning had become light when the men were sent away, both they and their asses. They went out of the city. They had not gone far when Joseph said to the man who was over his house -- "Get up! Chase after the men and to say to them -- 'Why have you repaid bad for good? Is not this thing that my master drinks from and by means of which he expertly reads omens? It is a bad deed you have committed.'" Eventually he overtook them spoke these words to them. But they said to him -- 'Why does my lord speak with such words as these? It is unthinkable that your servants should do anything like this. Why the money that we found in the mouth of the bags we brought back to you from the land of Canaan. How, then, could we steal silver or gold from the house of your master? Let the one of your slaves with whom it may be found die and let us ourselves also become slaves to my master." So he said -- "Let it be now exactly according to your words. Thus the one with whom it may be found will become a slave to me, but you yourselves will be proved innocent! With that they quickly let down each one his bag to the earth and they opened each one his own bag. And he went searching carefully. He started with oldest and finished with the youngest. At last the cup was found in Benjamin's bag. Then they ripped their mantles apart and lifted each one his load back onto his ass and returned to the city. And Judah and his brothers went on into Joseph's house, and he was still there -- and they proceeded to fall before him to the earth. Joseph now said to them -- "What sort of deed is this that you have done? Did you not know that such a man as I am can expertly read omens?" At this Judah exclaimed -- "What can we say to my master? What can we speak? And how can we prove ourselves righteous? The true God has found out the error of your slaves. Here we are slaves to my master, both we and the one in whose hand the cup was found." However, he said -- "It is unthinkable for me to do this! The man in whose hand the cup was found is the one who will become a slave to me. As for the rest of you, go up in peace to your father." Judah now came near to him and said -- "I pray you, my master, please let your slave speak a word in the hearing of my master, and do not let your anger grow hot against your slave, because it is the same with you as Pharaoh. My master asked his slaves, saying, 'Do you have a father or a brother?' So we said to my master, 'We do have an aged father and a child of his old age, the youngest. But his brother is dead so that he alone is left of his mother, and his father does love him.'' After that you said to your slaves, "Bring him down to
me that I may set my eye upon him. But we said to my master, 'The boy is not able to leave his father. If he did leave his father, he would certainly die.' Then you said to your slaves, 'Unless your youngest brother comes down with you, you may not see my face anymore.' "And it came about that we went up to your slave my father and then told him the words of my master. Later our Father said -- "Return, buy a little food for us.' But we said-- 'We are not able to go down. If our youngest brother is with us we will go down, because we are not able to see the man's face in case our youngest brother is not with us.' Then your slave my father said to us--'You yourselves well know that my wife bore but 2 sons to me. Later the one went out from my company and I exclaimed -- "Ah, he must surely be torn to pieces!" and I have not seen him till now. If you were to take this one also out of my sight and a fatal accident were to befall him, you would certainly bring down my gray hairs with calamity to Sheol.' "And now, as soon as I should come down to your slave my father without the boy along with us, when that one's soul is bound up with this one's soul then it is certain to occur that as soon as he sees that the boy is not there he will simply die, and your slaves will indeed bring down the gray hairs of your slave our father with grief to Sheol. For your slave became surety for the boy when away from his father, saying -- 'If I fail to bring him back to you, then I shall have sinned against my father forever.' So now, please, let your slave stay instead of the boy as slave to my master, that the boy may go up with his brothers. For how can I go up to my father without the boy along with me, for fear that then I may look upon the calamity that will find out my father?" 45 At this Joseph was no longer able to control himself before all those who were stationed by him. So he cried out -- "Have everybody go out from me!" And no one else stood with him while Joseph made himself known to his brothers. And he began to raise his voice in weeping, so that the Egyptians got to hear it and Pharaoh's house got to hear it. Finally Joseph said to his brothers -- "I am Joseph. Is my father still alive?" But his brothers were unable to answer him at all, because they were disturbed by reason of him. So Joseph said to his brothers -- "Come close to me, please." With that they came close to him. Then he said -- "I am Joseph your brother, whom you sold into Egypt. But now do not feel hurt and do not be angry with yourselves because you sold me here -- because for the preservation of life God has sent me ahead of you. For this is the 2nd year of the famine in the midst of the earth, and there are yet 5 years in which there will be no plowing time of harvest. Consequently God sent me ahead of you in order to place a remnant for you men in the earth and to keep you alive by a great escape. So now it was was not you who sent me here, but it was the true that God, that he might appointed me a father to Pharaoh and a lord for all his house and as one dominating over all the land of Egypt. "Go up quickly to my father and you must say to him, "This is what your son Joseph has said-- "God has appointed me lord for all Egypt. Come down to me. Do not delay. And you must
Dwell in the land of Goshen, and you must continue near me, you and your sons and the sons of your sons and your flocks and your herds and everything you have. And I will supply with food there, for there are yet 5 years of famine -- for fear you and your house and everything you have may come to poverty. And here your eyes and the eyes of my brother Benjamin are seeing that it is my mouth that is speaking to you. So you must tell my father about all of my glory in Egypt and everything that you have seen -- and you must hurry and bring my father down here." Then he fell upon the neck of Benjamin his brother and gave way to weeping, and Benjamin wept upon his neck. And he proceeded to kiss all his brothers and weep over them, and after that his brothers spoke with him. And the news was heard at the house of Pharaoh, saying -- "Joseph's brothers have come!" And it proved to be good in the eyes of the Pharaoh and of his servants. Accordingly Pharaoh said to Joseph --"Say to your brothers, 'Do this--Load your beasts of burden and go enter the land of Canaan, and take your father and your households and come here to me, that I may give you the good of the land of Egypt -- and eat the fat part of the land. And you yourself are commanded -- "Do this -- Take for yourselves wagons from the land of Egypt for your little ones and your wives, and you must lift your father on one and come here. And do not let your eye feel sorry over your equipment, because the good of all the land of Egypt is yours."'" Following that the sons of Israel did so, and Joseph gave them wagons according to Pharaoh's orders and gave them provisions for the way. To each of them he gave individual changes of mantles, but to Benjamin he gave 300 silver pieces and 5 changes of mantles. And to his father he sent as follows -- 10 asses carrying good things of Egypt and 10 she- asses carrying grain and bread and sustenance for his father for the way. Thus he sent his brothers off, and they proceeded to go. However, he said to them -- "Do not get exasperated at one another on the way." And they began going up out of Egypt and at length came into the land of Canaan to Jacob their father. Then they reported to him, saying -- "Joseph is still alive, and he is the one dominating over all the land of Egypt!" But his heart grew numb, because he did not believe them. When they went on speaking to him all of Joseph's words that he had spoken to them and he got to see the wagons that Joseph had sent to carry him, the spirit of Jacob their father began to revive. Then Israel exclaimed -- "It is enough! Joseph my son is still alive! Ah, let me go and see him before die!" 46 According Israel and all who were his pulled out and came to Beersheba, and he proceeded to sacrifice sacrifices to the God of his father Isaac. Then God talked to Israel in visions of the night and said -- "Jacob, Jacob" to which he said -- "Here I am!" And he went on to say -- "I am the true God, the God of your father. Do not be afraid to go down to Egypt, and I myself shall surely bring you, up also -- and Joseph will lay his hand upon your eyes."
After that Jacob got up out of Beersheba, and the sons of Israel continued transporting Jacob their father and their little ones and, their wives in the wagons that Pharaoh had sent to transport him. Further, they took along their herds and their goods, which they had accumulated in the land of Canaan. Eventually they came into Egypt, Jacob and all his offspring with him. He brought his sons and his sons with him, his daughters and his sons' daughters, even all his offspring with him into Egypt. Now these are the names of Israel's sons who came into Egypt -- Jacob and his sons -- Jacob's 1stborn was Reuben, And the sons of Reuben were sons were Hanoch, Pallu, Hezron, Carmi -- And sons of Simeon were Jemuel, Jamin, Ohad, Jachin, Zohar and Shaul the son of a Canaanite woman. And the sons of Levi were Gershon, Kohath and Merari. And the sons of Judah were Er, Onan, Shelah, Perez, Zerah. However, Er and Onan died in the land of Canaan -- And the sons of Perez came to be called Hezron and Hamul. The sons of Isasachar were Tola, Puvah, Iob, Shimron. And the sons of Zebulun were Sered, Elon, Jahleel. These are the sons of Leah, whom she bore to Jacob in Paddanaram, together with his daughter Dinah. All the souls of his sons and of his daughters were 33. And the sons of Gad were Ziphion and Haggi, Shuni and Ezbon, Eri and Arodi and Areli. And the sons of Asher were Imnah and Ishvah and Ishvi and Beriah, and there was Serah their sister. And the sons of Beriah were Heber and Malchiel. These are the sons of Zilpah, whom Laban gave to his daughter Leah. In time she bore these to Jacob -- 16 souls. The sons of Rachel, Jacob's wife, were Joseph and Benjamin. And there came to be born to Joseph in the land of Egypt Manasseh and Ephraim, whom Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera the priest of On bore to him. And the sons of Benjamin were Bela and Becher and Ashbel, Gera and Naaman, Ehi and Rosh, Muppim and Huppin and Ard. These are the sons of Rachel who were born to Jacob. All the souls were 14. And the sons of Dan were Hushim. And the sons of Naphtali were Jahzeel, and Guni and Jezer and Shillem -- These are the sons of Bilhah, whom Leban gave to his daughter Rachel. In time she bore these to Jacob -- all the souls were 7. All the souls who came to Jacob into Egypt were those who issued out of his upper thigh, aside from the wives of Jacob's sons. All the souls were 66. And Joseph's sons who were born to him in Egypt were 2 souls. All the souls of the house of Jacob who came into Egypt were 70. And he sent Judah in advance of him to Joseph to impart information ahead of him to Goshen. After that they came into
the land of Goshen. Then Joseph had his chariot made ready and went up to meet Israel his father at Goshen. When he appeared to him he at once fell upon the neck and gave way to tears upon his neck again and again. Finally Israel said to Joseph -- "This time I am willing to die, now that I have seen your face, since you are still alive." Then Joseph said to his brothers and to his father's household -- "Let me go up and report to Pharaoh and say to him, 'My brothers and my father's household who were in the land of Canaan have come here to me. And the men are shepherds, because they became stock raisers, and their flocks, and their herds and all they have brought here. And what must occur is that when Pharaoh will call you and actually say, 'What is your occupation?' You must say, ' Your servants have continued to be stock raisers from our youth, until now, both we and our forefathers,' in order that you may dwell in the land of Goshen, because every herder of sheep is a detestable thing to Egypt." 47 Accordingly Joseph came and reported to Pharaoh and said -- "My father and my brothers and their flocks and their herds and all they have come from the land of Canaan, and here they are in the land of Goshen." And from the whole number of his brothers he took 5 men, that he might present them to Pharaoh. Then Pharaoh said to his brothers -- "What is your occupation?" so they said to Pharaoh -- "Your servants are herders of sheep, both we and our forefathers." After that they said to Pharaoh -- "We have come to reside as aliens in the land, because there is no pasturage for flock that your servants have, for the famine is severe in the land of Canaan. And now let your servants dwell, please, in the land of Goshen." At that Pharaoh said to Joseph -- "Your father and your brothers have come here to you. The land of Egypt is at your disposal. Have your father and your brothers dwell in the very best of the land. Let them dwell in the land of Goshen, and if you know that there are among them courageous men, you must appoint them cattle chiefs over what is mine." Then Joseph brought in Jacob his father and introduced him to Pharaoh, and Jacob proceeded to bless Pharaoh. Pharaoh now said to Jacob -- "How many are the days of years did you live?" Jacob answered, "130 years as an alien, few distressing years of your life?" So Jacob said to Pharaoh -- "The days of the years of my alien residences are a 130 years. Few and distressing the days of the years of my life have proved, and they have not reached the days of the years of the lives of my fathers in the days of their alien residences." After that Jacob blessed Pharaoh and went out from before Pharaoh. Thus Joseph had his father and his brothers dwell and he gave them a possession in the land of Egypt, in the very best of the land of Rameses, just as Pharaoh had commanded. And Joseph kept supplying his father and his brothers and the entire household of his father with bread, according to the number of the little ones." Now there was no bread in all the land, because famine was very severe -- and the land of Egypt and the land of Canaan became exhausted as a result of the famine. And Joseph went on picking up all the money that was to be found in
the land of Egypt and in the land of Canaan for the cereals which people were buying -- and Joseph kept bringing money into Pharaoh's house. In time the money from the land of Egypt and the land of Canaan was spent, and all the Egyptians began coming to Joseph, saying -- "Give us bread! And why should we die in front of you because money has run out?" Then Joseph said -- "hand over your livestock and I shall give you bread in exchange for your livestock, if money has run out." And they began bringing their livestock to Joseph -- and Joseph kept giving them bread in exchange for their horse and the livestock of the flock and the livestock of the herd and the asses, and he kept providing them with bread in exchange for all their livestock during that year. Gradually that year came to its close, and they began coming to him in the next year and saying to him -- "We shall not hide it from my lord but the money and the stock of domestic animals have been spent to my lord. There remains nothing before my lord but our bodies and our land. Why should we die before your eyes, both we and our land. Buy us and our land for bread, and together with our land will become slaves to Pharaoh -- and give us seed that we may live and not die and our land will not be laid desolate. So Joseph bought all the land of Egyptians for the Pharaoh, because the Egyptian sold each one his field, for the famine had got a strong grip on them -- and the land came to be Pharaoh's. As for the people, he removed them into the cities from one end of the territory of Egypt its other end. Only the land of the priests he did not buy, because the rations for the priests were Pharoah and they ate their rations that Pharaoh gave them. That is why they did not sell their land. Then Joseph said to the people -- "See, I have today bought you and your land for Pharaoh. Here is seed for you, and you must sow the land with it. When it has resulted in produce, then you must give a 1/5 to Pharaoh, but 4 parts will become yours as seed for the field and as food for you and for those who are in your houses and for your little ones to eat." Consequently they said -- "You have preserved our lives. Let us find favor in the eyes of my lord, and will become slaves to Pharaoh." And Joseph proceeded to make it a decree down to this day over landed estate of Egypt for Pharaoh to have to the amount of a 5th. Only the land of priests as a distinct group did not become Pharaoh's. And Israel continued to dwell in the land of Egypt, in the land of Goshen -- and they became settled in it and were fruitful and grew to be very many. And Jacob's days, the years of his life, came to be a 147 years. Gradually the days approached for Israel to die. So he called his son Joseph and said to him -- "If now, I have found favor in your eyes, place your hand, please, under my thigh, and you must exercise loving-kindness and trustworthiness toward me. (Please do not bury me in Egypt.) And I, must lie with my fathers, and you must carry me out of Egypt and bury me in their grave." Accordingly he said -- "I myself shall do in keeping with your word." Then he said -- "Swear to me." So he swore to him. At that Israel prostrated himself over the head of the couch.
48 And it came about after these things that it was said to Joseph -- "Look, your father is becoming weak." At that he took with him his 2 sons Manasseh and Ephraim. Then it was reported to Jacob and said -- "Here your son Joseph has come to you." So Israel exerted his strength and sat up on his couch. And Jacob proceeded to say to Joseph -- "God Almighty appeared to me at Luz in the land of Canaaan that he might bless me. And he went on to say to me -- 'Here I am making you fruitful, and I will transform you into a congregation of peoples and I will give this land to your seed after you for a possession to time indefinite.' And now your 2 sons who were born to you in the land of Egypt before I came here to you into Egypt, they are mine. Ephraim and Manasseh will become mine like Reuben and Simeon. But your progeny to which you shall become father after them will become yours. Together with the name of their brothers they will be called in their inheritance. And as for me, when I was coming from Paddan, Rachel died alongside me in the land of Canaan on the way while there was yet a good stretch of land before coming to Ephrath, so that I buried her there on the way to Ephrath, that is to say, Bethlehem." Then Israel saw Joseph's sons and said -- "Who are these?" So Joseph said to his father -- "They are my sons whom God has given me in this place." At this he said -- "Bring them, please, to me that I may bless them." Now the eyes of Israel were dull from old age. He was unable to see. Accordingly he brought them close to him, and he then kissed them and embraced them. And Israel went on to say to Joseph -- "I had no idea of seeing your face, but here God has let me see also your offspring." After that Joseph brought them out away from his knees, and he bowed down with his face to the earth. Joseph now took the 2 of them, Ephraim by his right hand to Israel's left, and Manasseh by his hand to Israel bowed down with his face to the earth. Joseph now took the 2 of them--Ephraim by his right hand to Israel's left, Manasseh's by left hand to Israel's right, and brought them close to him. However, Israel put out his right hand and placed it on Ephraim's head, although he was the younger, and his left hand upon Manasseh's head. He purposely laid his hands so, since Manasseh was the 1stborn. And he proceeded to bless Joseph and to say -- "The true God before my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked, The true God who has shepherding me during all my existence until this day. The angel who has been recovering me from all calamity, bless the boys. And let my name be called upon them and the name of my fathers, Abraham and Isaac, And let them increase to a multitude in the midst of the earth." When Joseph saw that his father kept his right hand placed on Ephraim's head, it was displeasing to him, and he tried to take hold of his father's hand to remove it from Ephraim's head to Manasseh's head. Hence Joseph said to his father -- "Not so, my father, because this is the 1stborn. Put your right hand on his head." But his father kept refusing and said -- "I know it, my son, I know it,
He too will become a people and he too will become great. But, just the same, his younger brother will become greater than he will, and his offspring will become the full equivalent of nations." And he continued to bless them on that day, saying -- "By means of you let Israel repeatedly pronounce blessing, saying, 'May God constitute you like Ephraim --may God make you like Ephraim and Manasseh." Thus he kept putting Ephraim before Manasseh. After that Israel said to Joseph -- "Look, I am dying, but God will certainly continue with you people and return you to the land of your forefathers. As for me, I do l give you one shoulder of land more than to your brothers, which I took from the hand of Amorites by my sword and by my law. 49 Later on Jacob called his sons and said -- "Gather yourselves together that I may tell you what will happen to you in the final part of his days. Assemble yourselves and listen, you sons of Jacob, yes, listen to Israel your father. "Reuben, you are my 1stborn, my vigor and the beginning of my generative power, the excellence of dignity and excellence of strength. With reckless license like waters, do not you excel, because you have gone up to your father's bed. At that time you profaned (disgraced) my lounge. He went up to it. "Simeon and Levi are brothers. Instruments of violence are their slaughter weapons. Into their intimate group do not come, O my soul. With their congregation do not become united, O my disposition, because in their anger they killed men, and in their arbitrariness they hamstrung bulls. Cursed be their anger, because it is cruel, and their fury, because it acts harshly. Let me parcel them out in Jacob and let me scatter them in Israel. "As for you, Judah, your brothers will laud (praise) you. Your hand will be on the back of the necks of your enemies. The sons of your father will prostrate themselves to you. A lion cub Judah is. From the prey, my son, you will certainly go up. He bowed down, he stretched himself out like a lion and, like a lion, who dares rouse him? The scepter will not turn aside from Judah, neither the commander's staff from between his feet, until Shiloh (peace) comes, and to him the obedience of peoples will belong. Tying his full grown ass to a vine the descendant of his own she ass to a choice vine, he will certainly wash his clothing in wine and and his garment in the blood of grapes. Dark red are his eyes from wine, and the whiteness of his teeth is from milk. "Zebulun will reside by the seashore, and he will be by the shore where the ships lie anchored, and his remote side will be toward Sidon. "Issachar is a strong boned ass, lying down between 2 saddlebags. And he will see that resting place is good and that land is pleasant, and he will bend down his shoulder to bear burdens and become subject to slavish forced labor. "Dan will judge his people as one of the tribes of Israel. Let Dan prove to be a serpent by the roadside, a horned snake by wayside, that bites the heels of the horse so that its rider
falls backward. I shall indeed wait for salvation from you O Jehovah. " As for Gad, a marauder band will raid him, but he will raid the extreme rear. "Out of Asher his bread will be fat, and he will give the dainties of a king. "Naphtali is a slender hind. He is giving words of elegance. "Offshoot of a fruit bearing tree by the fountain, that propels its branches up over a wall. But the archers kept harassing him and shot at him and kept harboring animosity against him. And yet his bow was dwelling in a permanent place, and the strength of his hands war supple. From the hands of Powerful One of Jacobs, from there is the Shepherd, the Stone of Israel. He is from the God of your father, and he will help you -- and he is with the Almighty, and he will bless you with the blessing of the heavens above, with the blessings of the watery deep lying down below, with the blessing of breasts and womb. The blessings of your father will indeed be superior to the blessings of the eternal mountains, to the ornament of the indefinitely lasting hills. They will continue upon head of Joseph, even upon the crown of the head of the one singled out from his brothers. "Benjamin will keep on tearig life a wolf. In the morning he will eat the animal seized and at evening, he will divide the spoil." All these are the 12 tribes of Israel, and this is what their father spoke to them when he was blessing them. He blessed them each one according to his own blessing. That he commanded them and said to them -- "I am being gathered to my people. Bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite, in the cave that is in the field of Machpelah that is in front of Mamre in the land of Canaan, the field that Abraham purchased from Ephron the Hittite for the possession of a burial place. There they buried Abraham and Sarah his wife. There they buried Leah. The field purchased and the cave that is in it were from the sons of Heth. Thus Jacob finished giving commands to his sons. then he gathered his feet up onto the couch and expired and was gathered to his people. 50 Then Joseph fell upon the face of his father and burst into tears over him and kissed him. After that Joseph commanded his servants, the physicians, to embalm his father. So the physicians embalmed Israel, and they took fully 40 days for him, for this many days they customarily take for embalming, and the Egyptians continued to shed tears for him 70 days. Finally the days of weeping for him passed, and Joseph spoke to Pharaoh's household, saying -- "If, now, I have found favor in your eyes, speak, please, in the hearing of Pharaoh, saying-- 'My father made me swear, saying -- "Look! I am dying. In my burial place which I have excavated for myself in the land of Canaan is where you are to bury me." And now, please, let me go up and bury my father, after which I am willing to return.'" Accordingly Pharaoh
said -- "Go up and bury your father just as he made you swear." So Joseph went up to bury his father, and there went up with him all of Pharaoh's servants, the older men of his household and all the older men of the land of Egypt, and all Joseph's household and his brothers and the household of his father. Only their little children and their flocks and their herds they left in the land of Goshen. There also went up with him both chariots and horsemen, and the camp came to be very numerous. Then they came to be threshing floor of Atad, which is in the region of the Jordan, and there they carried on a very great and heavy wailing and he kept up the mourning rites in the threshing floor of Atad, and they exclaimed -- "This is a heavy mourning for the Egyptians!" That is why its name Abelmizraim, which is in the region of the Jordan. And his sons proceeded to do for him exactly as he commanded them. So his sons carried him into land of Canaan and buried him in the cave of the field of Machpelah, the field that Abraham had purchased for the possession of a burial place from Ephron the Hittite in front of Mamre. Afterward Joseph returned to Egypt, he and his brothers and all those who went up with him to bury his father, after he had buried his father. When the brothers of Joseph saw that their father was dead, they began to say-- "It may be that Joseph is harboring animosity against us and he will be sure to repay us for all the evil that we have rendered him."' So they expressed a command to Joseph in these words -- "Your father gave the command before his death, saying, 'This is what you say to Joseph -- "I beseech you, pardon, please, the revolt of your brothers and their sin in that they have rendered evil to you." And now pardon, please, the revolt of the servants of your father's God." And Joseph burst into tears when they spoke to him. Following that his brothers also came and fell down before him and said -- "Here we are as slaves to you!" Then Joseph said to them-- "Do not be afraid, for am I in the place of God? As for you, you had evil in mind against me. God had it in mind for good for the purpose of acting as at this day to preserve many people alive. So now do not be afraid. I myself shall keep supplying you and your little children with food." Thus he comforted them and spoke reassuringly to them. And Joseph continued to dwell in Egypt, he and the house of his father-- and Joseph lived for a 110 years. And Joseph got to see Epraim's sons of the 3rd generation, also the sons of Machir the Manasseh's son. They were born upon Joseph's knees. At length Joseph said to his brothers -- "I am dying, but God will without fail turn his attention to you, and he will certainly bring you up out of this land to the land about which he swore to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob." Hence Joseph made the sons of Israel swear, saying -- "God will without fail turn his attention to you. Accordingly you must take my bones up out of here!" After that Joseph at the age of 110 years -- and they had him embalmed, and he was put in coffin in Egypt.
Black Ink--Bible Page/Text
Blue Ink -- Understand & Pray
Exodus 1 - 40
Exodus 1 Now these are the names of Israel's sons who came into Egypt with Jacob -- each man and his household came -- Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issarchar, Zebulun and Benjamin, Dan , Naphtali, Gad and Asher. And all the souls who issued out of Jacob's upper thigh were 70 souls, but Joseph was already in Egypt. Eventually Joseph died, and also all his brothers and also all that generation. And the sons of Israel became fruitful and began to swarm -- and they kept on multiplying and growing mightier at a very extraordinary rate, so that the land got to be filled with them. In time there arose over Egypt a new king who did not know Joseph. And he proceeded to say to his people -- "Look! The people of the sons of Israel are more numerous and mightier than we are. Come on! Let us deal shrewdly with them, for fear they may multiply, and it must turn out that, in case war should befall us, then they certainly will also be added to those who hate us and fight against us and go up out of the country." So they set over them chiefs of forced labor for the purpose of oppressing them in their burden bearing -- and they went building cities as storage places for Pharaoh, namely. Pithom and Raamses. But the more they would oppress them, the more they would multiply and the more they kept spreading abroad, so that they felt a sickening dread as a result of the sons of Israel. Consequently the Egyptians made the sons of Israel slaves under tyranny. And they kept making their life bitter with hard slavery at clay mortar and bricks and with every form of slavery in the field, yes, every form of slavery of theirs in which they used them as slaves under tyranny. Later on the king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, the name of one whom was Shiphrah and the name of the other was Puah, yes, he went so far as to say -- "When you help the Hebrew women to give birth and you do see them on the stool for childbirth, if it is a son, you must also put it to death -- but if it is a daughter, it must live." However, the midwives feared the true God, and they did not do as king of Egypt had spoken to them, but they would preserve the male children alive. In time the king of Egypt called the midwives and said to them -- "What is it you have done this thing, in that you preserved the male children alive?" In turn the midwives said to Pharaoh -- "Because the Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women, because they are lively, they have already given birth before the midwives can come in to them." So God dealt well with the midwives, and the people kept growing more numerous and becoming very mighty. And it came about that because the midwives had feared the true God he later presented them with families. Finally Pharaoh commanded all his people, saying -- "Every newborn son you are to throw into the river Nile, but every daughter you are to preserve alive." 2 Meantime, a certain man of the house of Levi went ahead and took a daughter of Levi. And the woman became
pregnant and brought a son to birth. When she saw how good -looking he was, she kept him concealed for 3 lunar months. When she was no longer able to conceal him, she then look for him an ark of papyrus and coated it with bitumen and pitch and put the child in it and put it among the reeds by the bank of river Nile. Further, his sister stationed herself at a distance to find out what would be done with him. After a while Pharaoh's daughter came down to bathe in the Nile River. And she caught sight of the ark in the middle of the reeds. Immediately she sent her slave girl that she might get it. When she opened it she got to see the child, and here the boy was weeping. At that she felt compassion for him, although she said -- "This is one of the children of the Hebrews." Then his sister said to Pharaoh's daughter -- "Shall I go and specially call for you a nursing woman from the Hebrew women that she may nurse the child for you?" So the Pharaoh's daughter said to her -- "Go!" At once the maiden went and called the child's mother. Pharaoh's daughter then said to her -- "Take this child with you and nurse him for me, and I myself shall give you your wages." Accordingly the woman took the child and nursed him. And the child grew up. Then she brought him to Pharaoh's daughter, so that he became a son to her -- and she proceeded to call his name Moses and to say -- "It is because I have drawn him out of the water." Now it came about in those days, as Moses was becoming strong, that he went out to his brothers that he might look at the burdens that they were bearing -- and he caught sight of a certain Egyptian striking a Hebrew of his brothers. So he turned this way and that and saw there was nobody in sight. Then he struck the Egyptian down and hid him in the sand. However, he went out on the following day and here there were 2 Hebrew men struggling with each other -- So he said to the one in the wrong -- "Why should you strike your companion?" At this he said -- "Who appointed you as a prince and judge over us? Are you intending to kill me just as you killed the Egyptian?" Moses now got afraid and said -- "Surely this thing has become known!" Subsequently Pharaoh got to hear of this thing, and he attempted to kill Moses, but Moses ran away from Pharaoh that he might dwell in the land of Midian -- and he took a seat by a well. Now the priest of Midian had 7 daughters, and as usual they came and drew water and filled the gutters to water their father's flock. And as usual the shepherds came and drove them away. At this Moses got up and helped the women out and watered their flock. So when they came home to Reuel their father he exclaimed -- "How is it you have come home so quickly today?" To this they said -- "A certain Egyptian delivered us out of the hand of the shepherds and, besides, he actually drew water for us that he might water the flock." Then he said to his daughters -- "But where is he? Why is that you have left the man behind? Call him, that he may eat bread." After that Moses showed willingness to dwell with the man, and he gave Zipporah his daughter to Moses. Later she bore a son and he called his name Gershom, because, he
said -- "An alien I have come to be in a foreign land." And about during these days the king of Egypt finally died, but the sons of Israel continued to sigh because of the slavery, and the complaints and cry for help kept going up to the true God because of slavery. In time God heard their groaning and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. So God looked on the sons of Israel and God took notice. 3 And Moses became a shepherd of the flock of Jethro, the priest of Midian, whose son-in-law he was. While he was a driving the flock to the west side of the wilderness, he came at length to the mountain of the true God, to Horeb. Then Jehovah's angel appeared to him in a flame of fire in the midst of a thornbush. As he kept looking, why, here the thornbush was burning with fire and yet the thornbush was not consumed. At this Moses said -- "Let me just turn aside that I may inspect this great phenomenon, as to why the thornbush is not burnt up." When Jehovah saw that he turned aside to inspect, God at once called him out of the midst of the thornbush and said -- "Moses! Moses!" to which he said -- "Here I am." Then he said -- "Do not come near here. Draw your sandals from off your feet, because the place where you are standing is a holy ground." And he went on to say -- "I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob." Then Moses concealed his face, because he was afraid to look at the true God. And Jehovah added -- "Unquestionably I have seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt, and I have heard their outcry as a result of those who drive them to work -- because I well know the pains they suffer. And I am proceeding to go down to deliver them out of the hand of Egyptians and to bring them out of that land to a land good and spacious, to a land flowing with milk and honey, to the locality of the Canaanites and the Hittites and the Amorites and the Perizzites and the Hivites and the Jebusites. And now, look! the outcry of the sons of Israel has come to me, and I have seen also the oppression with which the Egyptians are oppressing them. And now come and let me send you to Pharaoh, and you bring my people the sons of Israel out of Egypt." However, Moses said to the true God -- "Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and that I have to bring the sons of Israel out of Egypt?" To this he said -- "Because I shall prove to be with you, and this is the sign for you that it is I who have sent you -- After you have brought the people out of Egypt, you people will serve the true God on this mountain." Nevertheless, Moses said to true God, "Suppose I am now come to the sons of Israel and I do say to them -- 'The God of your forefathers has sent me to you,' and they do say to me, 'What is his name?' What shall I say to them?" At this God said to Moses -- "I shall prove to be what I shall prove to be." And he added -- "This is what you are to say to the sons of Israel, 'I SHALL PROVE TO BE has sent me to you.'" Then God said once more to Moses -- "This is what you are to say to the sons of Israel--"Jehovah the God
of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob has sent me to you. This is my name forever and this I will be remembered for generation after generation. You go and you must gather older men of Israel and say to them, "God has appeared to me, God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob said without fail give attention to you and to what is being done to you in Egypt. And so I say I shall bring you up out of affliction by the Egyptians to the land of Canaanites and, the Hittites and the Amorites and the Perizzites and the Hivites and the Jebusites, to a land of flowing with milk and honey."' "And they will certainly listen to your voice, and you must come, you and the older men of Israel, to the king of Egypt, and you men must say to him, 'Jehovah the God of the Hebrews has come in touch with us, and now we want to go, please, a journey of 3 days into the wilderness, and we want to sacrifice to Jehovah our God.' And I, even I, well know that king of Egypt will not give you permission to go except by a strong hand. And I shall have stretch out my hand and strike Egypt with all my wonderful acts that he will give this people favor in the eyes of the Egyptians -- and it will certainly occur that when you go, you will not go empty handed. And each woman must ask from her neighbor and from the woman residing as an alien in her house articles of silver and articles of gold and mantles, and you must put them upon your sons and daughters -- and you must strip the Egyptians." 4 However, Moses in answering said -- "But suppose they do not believe me and do not listen to my voice, because they are going to say, 'God did not appear to you.'" Then God said to him -- "What is that in your hand?" to which he said -- "A rod." Next he said -- "Throw it on the earth." So he threw it on the earth, and it became a serpent -- and Moses began to flee from it. God now said to Moses -- "thrust your hand out and grab hold of it by the tail." So he thrust his hand out and grabbed hold of it, and it became a rod in his palm. "In order that," to quote him, "they may believe that God the God of their forefathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you." Then God said to him once more -- "Stick your hand, please, into the upper fold of your garment. When he drew it out, why, here his hand was stricken with leprosy like snow! After that he said -- "Return your hand into the upper fold of your garment." So he returned his hand into the upper fold of his garment, why, here it was restored like the rest of his flesh! "And it must occur that," to quote him, "If they will not believe you and will not listen to the voice of the 1st sign, then they will certainly believe the voice of the later sign. Still it must occur that, if they will not believe even these 2 signs and will not listen to your voice, then you will have to take some water from the Nile River and pour it on the dry land -- and the water that you will take from the Nile River will certainly become, yes, it will indeed become blood on the dry land."
Moses now said to Jehovah -- "Excuse me, God, but I am not a fluent speaker, neither since yesterday, nor since before that nor since your speaking to your servant, for I am slow of mouth and slow of tongue." At that God said to him -- "Who appointed a mouth for man or who appoints the speechless or the deaf or the clear-sighted or the blind? Is is not I, God? So now go, and I myself shall prove to be with your mouth and I will teach you what you ought to say." But he said -- "Excuse me, God, but send, please, by the hand of the one whom you are going to send." Then God's anger grew hot against Moses and he said -- "Is not Aaron the Levite your brother? I do know that he can really speak. And, besides, here he is on his way out to meet you. When he does see you, he will certainly rejoice in his heart. And you must speak to him and put the words in his mouth, and I myself shall prove to be with your mouth and his mouth, and I will teach you men what to do. And he must speak for you to the people -- and it must occur that he will serve as a mouth to you, and you will serve as God to him. And this rod you will take in your hand that you may perform the signs with it." Accordingly Moses went and returned to Jethro his father-in-law and said to him -- "I want to go, please, and return to my brothers who are in Egypt that I may see whether they are still alive." So Jethro said to Moses -- "Go in peace." After that God said to Moses in Midian -- "Go return to Egypt, because all the men who were hunting for your soul are dead." Then Moses took his wife and his sons and made them ride on an ass, and he proceed to return to the land of Egypt. Moreover, Moses took the rod of the true God in his hand. And God went on to say to Moses -- "After you have gone and returned to Egypt see that you actually perform all the miracles that I have put in your hand before Pharaoh. As for me, I shall let his heart become obstinate -- and he will not send people away. And you must say to Pharaoh, "This is what God has said--"Israel is my son, my 1stborn. And I say to you -- Send my son away that he may serve me. But should you refuse to send him away, here I am killing your son, your 1stborn."'" Now it came about on the road at the lodging place that God got to meet him and kept looking for a way to put him to death. Finally Zipporah took a flint and cut off her son's foreskin and caused it to touch his feet and said -- "It is because you are a bridegroom of blood to me." Consequently he let go of him. At that time she said -- "A bridegroom of blood," because of the circumcision. Then God said to Aaron -- "Go to meet Moses into the wilderness." With that he went and met him in the mountain of the true God and kissed him. And Moses proceeded to tell Aaron all the words of God, who had sent him, and all the signs that he had commanded him to do. After that Moses and Aaron went and gathered all the older men of sons of Israel. Then Aaron spoke all the words that God had spoken to Moses, and he performed the signs under the eyes of people. At this people believed. When they heard that God had turned his attention to the sons of Israel
and that he had seen their affliction, then they bowed down and prostrated themselves. 5 And afterward Moses and Aaron went in and proceeded to say to Pharaoh -- "This is what God the God of Israel has said -- " Send my people away that they may celebrate a festival to me in the wilderness." But Pharaoh said -- "Who is God, so that I should obey his voice to send Israel away?" I do not know God at all and, what is more, I am not going to send Israel away." However, they went on to say -- "The God of the Hebrews has come in touch with us. We want to go, please, a journey of 3 days into the wilderness and sacrifice to God our Jehovah -- otherwise he may strike at us with pestilence or with sword." At this the king of Egypt said to them -- "Why is it, Moses and Aaron, that you cause the people to leave off from their works? Go bearing your burdens! And Pharaoh continued -- "Look! The people of the land are now many, and you indeed make them desist from their bearing of burdens." Immediately on that day Pharaoh commanded those who drove the people to work and their officers, saying -- "You must not gather straw to give to the people to make bricks as formerly. Let them themselves go and gather straw for themselves. Moreover, the required amount of bricks that they were making formerly, you will further impose upon them. You must not make any reduction for them, because they are relaxing. That is why they are relaxing. That is why they are crying out, saying, "We want to go, we want to sacrifice to our God!' Let the service be heavy upon the men and let them work at it, and let them not pay attention to false words." So those who drove the people to work and their officers went out and said to the people -- "Here is what Pharaoh has said, 'I am giving you no more straw. You yourselves go, get straw for yourselves wherever you may find it, because there is to be no reducing of your services one bit.'" Consequently the people scattered about over all the land of Egypt to gather stubble for straw. And those who drove them to work kept urging them, saying -- "Finish your works, each one his work, day for day, just as when the straw was available." Later on the officers of the sons of Israel, whom Pharaoh's taskmasters had set over them, were beaten, these saying -- "Why is it you did not finish your prescribed task in making bricks as formerly, both yesterday and today?" Consequently the officers of the sons of Israel went in and began to cry out to Pharaoh, saying -- "Why do you deal this way with your servants? There is no straw given to the servants and yet they are saying to us, 'Make bricks!' and here your servants are beaten, whereas your own people are wrong at fault" But he said, "You are relaxing, you are relaxing! That is why you are saying, 'We want to go, we want to sacrifice to God. And now go, serve! Though no straw will be given to you, yet you are to give the fixed amount of bricks!" Then the officer os the sons of Israel saw themselves in an evil plight at the saying -- "You must not deduct from your bricks one bit of anyone's daily rate." After that they encountered Moses and Aaron, who were standing there to meet them as they came out from Pharaoh . At once they said to them -- "May God look upon
you and judge, since you have made us smell offensive before Pharaoh and before his servants so to put a sword in their hand to kill us." Then Moses turned to God and said -- "God, why have you caused evil to this people? Why is it that you have sent me? For from the time I went in before Pharaoh to speak in your name, he has done evil to this people, and you have by no means delivered your people." 6 So God said to Moses -- "Now you will see what I shall do to Pharaoh, because on account of a strong hand he will send them away on account of a strong hand he will drive them out of his land." And God went on to speak to Moses and to say to him, "I am God, I used to appear to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob as God Almighty, but as respects my name Jehovah, I did not make myself known to them. And I also established my covenant with them to give them the land of Canaan, the land of their alien residences in which they resided as aliens. And I, even I, have heard the groaning of the sons of Israel, whom the Egyptians are enslaving, and I remember my covenant. "Therefore say to the sons of the sons of Israel, 'I am Jehovah, and I shall certainly bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians and deliver you from their slavery, and I shall indeed reclaim you with an outstretched arm and with great judgements. And I shall certainly take you to me as a people, and I shall indeed prove to be God to you -- and you will certainly know that I am Jehovah your God who is bring you out from under the burdens of Egypt. And I shall certainly bring you into the land that I raised my hand in oath to give to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob -- and I shall indeed give it to you as something to possess. I am Jehovah.'" Afterward Moses spoke to this effect to the sons of Israel, but they did not listen to Moses out of discouragement and for hard slavery. Then God spoke to Moses, saying -- "Go in, speak to Pharaoh, Egypt's king, that he should send the sons of Israel away out of his land." However, Moses spoke before God, saying -- "Look! the sons of Israel have not listened to me -- and how will Pharaoh ever listen to me, as I am uncircumcised in lips?" But God continued to speak to Moses and Aaron and issue the command by them to the sons of Israel, to the Phar'aoh, the king of Egypt in order to bring sons of Israel and to Pharaoh, Egypt's king, in order to bring the sons of Israel out from the land of Egypt. These are the heads of the house of their fathers -- The sons of Reuben, Israel's 1stborn, were Hanoch and Pallu, Hezron and Carmi. These are the families of Reuben. And the sons of Simeon were Jemuel and Jamin and Ohad and Jachin and Zohar and Shaul the son of Canaanite woman. These are the families of Simeon. And these are the names of the sons of Levi, according to their family descents -- Gershon and Kohath and Merari. And the years of Levi's life were a 137 years. The sons of Gershon were Libni and Shimei, according to their families. And the sons of Kohath were Amram and Izhar,
and Hebron and Uzziel. And the years of Kohath's life were 133 years. And the sons of Merari were Mahli and Mushi. These were the families of the Levites, according to their family descents. Now Amram took Jochebed his father's sister as his wife. Later she bore him Aaron and Moses. And the years of Amram's life were a 137 years. And the sons of Izhar were Korah and Nepheg and Zichri. And the sons of Uzziel were Mishael and Elzaphan and Sithri. Now Aaron took Elisheba, Amminadab's daughter, the sister of Nahshon, as his wife. Later she bore him Nadab, and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar. And the sons of Korah were Assir and Elkanah and Abiasaph. These were families of Korahites. And Eleazar, Aaron's son, took for himself one of the daughters of Putiel as his wife. Later she bore him Phinehas. These are the heads of the fathers of the Levites, according to their families. This is the Aaron and Moses to whom God said -- "Bring the sons of Israel out from the land of Egypt according to their armies." They were the ones speaking to Pharaoh, Egypt's king, to bring the sons of Israel out of from Egypt. This is the Moses and Aaron. It came about on that day God spoke to Moses in the land of Egypt, that God went on to speak to Moses, saying "I am God. Speak to Pharaoh king of Egypt everything I am speaking to you." Then Moses said before God -- "Look! I am uncircumcised in lips, so how will Pharaoh ever listen to me?" 7 Consequently God said to Moses, "See, I have made you God to Pharaoh, and Aaron your own brother will become your prophet. You -- you will speak all that I shall command you -- and Aaron your brother will do the speaking to Pharaoh, and he must send the sons of Israel away from his land. As for me, I shall let Pharaoh's heart become obstinate, and I shall certainly multiply my signs and my miracles in the land of Egypt. And Pharaoh will not listen to you men -- and I shall have to lay my hand upon Egypt and bring my armies, my people, the sons of Israel, out from the land of Egypt with great judgements. And the Egyptians will certainly know that I am God when I stretch out my hand against Egypt, and I shall indeed bring the sons of Israel out from their midst." And Moses and Aaron went ahead doing as God had commanded them. They did just so. And Moses was 80 years old and Aaron was 83 years old at the time of speaking to Pharaoh. God now said to Moses and Aaron -- "In case that Pharaoh speaks to you, saying, 'Produce a miracle for yourselves', then you must say to Aaron, 'Take your rod and throw it down before Pharaoh.' It will become a big snake!" So Moses and Aaron went on in to Pharaoh and did exactly as God had commanded. Accordingly Aaron threw his rod down before Pharaoh and his servants and it became a big snake. However, Pharaoh also called the wise
men and the sorcerers -- and the magic practicing priests of Egypt themselves also proceeded to do the same thing with their magic arts. So they threw down each one his rod, and they became big snakes -- but Aaron's rod swallowed up their rods. Still, Pharaoh's heart became obstinate, and he did not listen to them, just as God had spoken. Then God said to Moses -- "Pharaoh's heart is unresponsive. He has refused to send the people away. Go to Pharaoh in the morning. Look! He is going out of the water! And you must put yourself in position to meet him by the edge of the Nile River, and the rod that had turned into a serpent you are to take in your hand. And you must say to him, 'God the God of the Hebrews has sent me to you, saying -- "Send my people away that they may serve me in the wilderness," but here you have not obeyed until now. This is what God has said -- "By this you will know I am God. Here I am striking with the rod that is in my hand upon the water that is in the Nile River, and it will certainly turn into blood. And the fish that are in the Nile River will actually stink, and the Egyptians will simply have no stomach for drinking water from the Nile River."'" Subsequently God said to Moses -- "Say to Aaron, 'Take your rod and stretch your hand out over the waters of Egypt, over their rivers, over their Nile canals and over their reedy pools and over all their impounded waters, that they may become blood.' And there will certainly be blood in all the land of Egypt and in the wooden vessels and in the stone vessels." Immediately Moses and Aaron did so, just as God had commanded, and he lifted up the rod and struck the water that was in the Nile River under the eyes of Pharaoh and his servants, and all the water that was in the Nile River turn into blood. And the fish that were in the Nile River died, and the Nile River began to stink -- and the Egyptians were unable to drink water from the Nile River -- and the blood came to be in all the land of Egypt. Nevertheless, the magic practicing priests of Egypt proceeded to do the same thing with their secret arts -- so that Pharaoh's heart continued to be obstinate, and he did not listen to them, just as God had spoken. Hence Pharaoh turned and went into his house and he did not set his heart to have any regard for this either. And all the Egyptians went digging around about the Nile River for water to drink, because they were unable to drink any water from Nile River. 8 Then God said to Moses -- "Go in to Pharaoh, and you must say to him --'This is what God has said -- "Send my people away that they may serve me. And if you keep refusing to send them away, here I am plaguing all your territory with frogs. And the Nile River will fairly teem with frogs, and they will certainly come up and enter into your house and inner bedroom and upon your couch and into the houses of your servants and on your people and into your ovens and into your kneading troughs. And on you and on your people and on all your servants the frogs will come up."'" Later on God said to Moses -- "Say to Aaron, 'Stretch
your hand with your rod out over the rivers, the Nile canals, and the reedy pools and make the frogs come up over the the land of Egypt. At that Aaron stretched his hand out over the waters of Egypt, and the frogs began to come up and cover the land of Egypt. However, the magic practicing priests did the same thing by their secrets arts and made the frogs come up over the land Egypt. In time Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron said-- "Entreat God that he may remove the frogs from me and my people, as I want to send the people away that they may sacrifice to God." Then Moses said to Pharaoh -- "You take the glory over me to say when I shall make entreaty for you and your servants and your people in order to cut the frogs off from you and your houses. Only in the Nile River. will they be left." To this he said -- "Tomorrow." So he said, "it will be according to your word, in order that you may know that there's no one like Jehovah our God, In that the frogs will certainly turn away from you and your houses and your servants and your people. Only in Nile River will they be left." Accordingly Moses and Aaron went out from Pharaoh, and Moses cried out to God because of the frogs that He had put upon Pharaoh. Then God did according to Moses's word, and the frogs began to die off from the houses, the courtyards and the fields. And they went piling them up, heaps upon heaps, and the land began to stink. When the Pharaoh got to see that relief had taken place, his heart unresponsive -- and did not listen to them, just as God had spoken. God now said to Moses -- "Say to Aaron, 'Stretch your rod out and strike the dust of earth, and it must become gnats in all the land of Egypt.'" And they proceeded to do this. So Aaron stretched out his hand with his rod and struck the dust of the earth, and gnats came to be on man and beast. All the dust of the earth became gnats in all the land of Egypt. And the magic practicing priests tried to do the same by their secret arts, in order to bring forth the gnats, but they were unable. And the gnats came to be on man and beasts. Hence the magic practicing priests said to Pharaoh -- "It is the finger of God!" But Pharaoh's heart continued to be obstinate, and he did not listen to them, just as God spoken. Then God said to Moses -- "Get up early in the morning and take a position in front of Pharaoh. Look! He is coming out to the water! And you must say to him, 'This is what God has said-- "send my people away so that they may serve me. But if you are not sending my people away, here I am sending upon you and your servants and your people and into your houses the gadfly -- and the houses of Egypt will simply be full of gadfly, and also the ground upon which they are. And on that day I shall certainly make the land of Goshen upon which my people are standing distinct, that no gadfly may exist there, in order that you may know I am God that I am God in the midst of the earth. And I shall indeed set a demarcation between my people and your people. Tomorrow this sign will take place."'" And God proceeded to do so, and heavy swarms of gadflies began to invade the house
of Pharaoh and the house of his servants and all the land of Egypt. The land came to ruin as a result of the gadflies. Finally Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron and said -- "Go, sacrifice to your God in the land." But Moses said, "It is not admissible to do so, because we would sacrifice to God our Lord a thing detestable to the Egyptians before their eyes -- would they not stone us? We shall go a journey of 3 days into the wilderness and we shall definitely sacrifice to God our Lord just as he said to us." Pharaoh now said -- "I -- I shall send you away, and you will indeed sacrifice to God your Lord in the wilderness. Only do not make it quite so far away that you are going. Make entreaty in my behalf." Then Moses said -- "Here I am going forth from you, and I shall indeed make an entreaty to God, and the gadflies will certainly turn away from Pharaoh, his servants, and his people tomorrow. Only let not Pharaoh trifle (being trivial, unimportant) again in not sending the people away to sacrifice to God." After that Moses went out from Pharaoh and make entreaty to Jehovah." So Jehovah did according to Moses' word, and the gadflies turned away from Pharaoh, his servants and his people. Not one was left. However, Pharaoh made his heart unresponsive this time also and he did not send the people away. 9 Consequently God said to Moses, "Go in to Pharaoh and you must state to him, 'This is what God the Lord of the Hebrews has said--"Send my people away that they may serve me. But if you continue refusing to send them away and you are still keeping hold of them, look! God's hand is coming upon your livestock that is in the field. On the horses, the asses, the camels, the herd and the flock there will be a very heavy pestilence. And God will certainly make a distinction between the livestock of Israel and the livestock of Egypt, and not a thing that belongs to sons of Israel will die." Moreover, God did this thing on the next day, and all sorts of livestock of Egypt began to die -- but not one of the livestock of sons of Israel died. Then Pharaoh sent, and, look! not so much as one of Israel's livestock had died. Nevertheless, Pharaoh's heart continued to be unresponsive, and he did not send people away. After that God said to Moses and Aaron -- "Take for yourselves both hands full of soot from a kiln, and Moses must toss it toward the heavens in Pharaoh's sight. And it must become a powder upon all the land of Egypt, and it must become boils breaking out with blisters upon man and beast in all the land of Egypt." So they took the soot of a kiln and stood before Pharaoh, and Moses tossed it toward the heavens, and it became boils with blisters, breaking out on man and beasts. And the magic practicing priests were unable to stand before Moses as a result of the boils, because the boils had developed on the magic practicing priests and on all the Egyptians. But Jehovah let Pharaoh's heart become obstinate, and he did not listen to them, just as Jehovah stated to Moses.
Then God said to Moses -- "Get up early in the morning and take a position in front of Pharaoh, and you must say to him, 'This is what God the Lord of the Hebrews has said -- "Send my people away that they may serve me. For at this time I am sending all my blows against your heart and upon your servants and your people, to the end that you may know that there is none like me in all the earth. For by now I could have thrust my hand out that I might strike you and your people with pestilence and that you might be effaced from the earth. But, in fact, for this cause I have kept you in existence, for the sake of showing you my power and in order to have my name declared in all the earth. Are you still behaving haughtily against my people in not sending them away? Here I am causing it to rain down tomorrow about this time a very heavy hail, the like of which has never occurred before in Egypt from the day it was founded until now. And now send, bring all your livestock and all that is yours in the field under shelter. As for any man and beasts that will be found in the field and not gathered into the house, the hail will have to come down upon them, and they have to die." Anyone who feared God's word among Pharaoh's servants caused his own servants and his livestock to flee into the houses, but whoever did not set his heart to have any regard for God's word left his servants and his livestock in the field. God now said to Moses -- "Stretch out your hand toward the heavens, that hail may come on all the land of Egypt, upon man and beasts and all vegetation of the field in the land of Egypt. So Moses stretched out his rod toward the heavens -- and God gave thunders and hail, and fire would run down to the earth, and God kept making it rain down hail upon the land of Egypt. Thus there came hail, and fire quivering in among the hail. It was very heavy, so there had not occurred any like it in all the land of Egypt from the time it became a nation. And the hail went striking at all the land of Egypt. The hail struck everything that was in the field, from man to beast, and all sorts of vegetation of the field -- and it shattered all sorts of trees in the field. Only in the land of Goshen where the sons of Israel were, there occurred no hail. Eventually Pharaoh sent and called Moses and Aaron and said to them -- "I have sinned this time. God is righteous, and I and my people are in the wrong. Entreat God that this may be enough of the occurring of God's thunders and hail. Then I am willing to send you away, and you will not stay any longer." So Moses said to him -- "As soon as I go out of the city I shall spread my hands up to God. The thunders will stop and the hail will not continue any longer, in order that that you may know that the earth belongs to God. As for you and your servants, I know already that you will not even then show fear because of Lord God." As it was, the flax and the barley had been struck, because the barley was in the ear and the flax had flower buds. But the wheat and the spelt had not been struck, because they were seasonally late. Moses now went out of the city from Pharaoh and spread his hands up to God, and the thunders and the hail began to stop and rain did not pour down on the earth. When Pharaoh got to see
that rain and the hail and the thunders had stopped, he went sinning again and making his heart unresponsive, he as well as his servants. And Pharaoh's heart continued obstinate, and he did not send the sons of Israel away, just as God had stated by means of Moses. 10 Then God said to Moses -- "Go in to Pharaoh, because I -- I have let his heart and the hearts of his servants become unresponsive, in order that I may set these signs of mine right before him, and in order that you may declare in the ears of your son and your sons' son how severely I have dealt with Egypt and my signs that I have made among them -- and you will certainly know I am God." So Moses and Aaron went in to Pharaoh and said to him -- "This is what God Lord of the Hebrews has said, 'How long must you refuse to submit yourself to me? Send my people away that they may serve me. For if you continue refusing to send my people away, here I am bringing locusts within your boundaries tomorrow. And they will actually cover the visible surface of the earth and it will not be possible to see the earth -- and they will simply eat up the rest of what has escaped, what has been left to you people by the hail, and they will certainly eat every sprouting tree of yours out of the field. And your houses and the houses of all of your servants and the houses of all Egypt will be filled to an extent that your fathers and your fathers' fathers have not seen it from the day of their existing upon the ground until this day.'" With that he turned and went out from Pharaoh. After that Pharaoh's servants said to him -- "How long will this man prove to be as a snare to us? Send the men away that they may serve God their Lord. Do you not yet know that Egypt has perished?" So Moses and Aaron were brought back to Pharaoh, and he said to them -- "Go, serve God your Lord. Who in particular are the ones going?" Then Moses said -- "With our young people and our old people we shall go. With our sons and our daughters, with our sheep and our cattle we shall go, for we have a festival to God." In turn he said to them -- "Let it prove to be so, that God is with you when I shall send you and your little ones away! See, on the contrary, something evil is your aim. Not so! Go, please, you who are able bodied men, and serve God, because that is what you are seeking to secure." With that they were driven out from before Pharaoh. God now said to Moses -- "Stretch your hand out over the land of Egypt for the locusts, that they may come up over the land of Egypt and eat up all the vegetation of the land, everything that the hail has let remain." At once Moses stretched his rod out over the land of Egypt, and God caused an east wind to blow upon the land all that day and all night. The morning came and the east wind carried the locusts. And the locusts began to come up over all the land of Egypt and to settle down upon all the territory land of Egypt. They were very burdensome. Before them there had never turned up in this way locusts like them, and they there will never turn up any in this way after them. And they went covering the visible surface of the entire land, and the land grew dark -- and they went on eating up all the vegetation in the land and all the fruit
of the trees that the hail had left -- and there was left nothing on the trees or on the vegetation of the field in all the land of Egypt. So Pharaoh hurriedly called Moses and Aaron and said-- "I have sinned against God your God and against you. And now pardon, please, my sin just this once and entreat God your God that he may turn away just this deadly plague from upon me." So he went out from Pharaoh and made entreaty to God. Then God made a shift to a very stiff west wind, and it carried the locusts away and drove them into the Red Sea. Not a single locust was let remain in all the territory of Egypt. However, God let Pharaoh's heart become obstinate, and he did not send the sons of Israel away. God then said to Moses -- "Stretch your hand out toward the heavens, that darkness may occur over the land of Egypt and the darkness may be felt. Moses immediately stretched his hand out toward the heavens and a gloomy darkness began to occur in all the land of Egypt for 3 days. They did not see one another, and none of them got up from his own place 3 days -- but for all the sons of Israel there proved to be light in their dwellings. After that Pharaoh called Moses and said -- "Go, serve God. Only your sheep and cattle will be detained. Your little ones also may go with you." But Moses said -- "You yourself will also give into our hands sacrifices and burnt offerings, as we must render them to God our Lord. And our livestock will also go with us. Not a hoof will be allowed to remain, because it is from them that we shall take some to worship God our Lord, and we ourselves do not know what we shall render in worship to God until our arriving there." At this God let Pharaoh's heart become obstinate, and he did not consent to send them away. So Pharaoh said to him --"Get out from me! Watch yourself! Do not try to see my face again, because on the day your seeing my face you will die." To this Moses said -- "That is the way you have spoken. I shall not try to see your face anymore." 11 And God proceeded to say to Moses-- "One plague more I am going to bring upon Pharaoh and Egypt. After that he will send you away from here. At the time he sends you away altogether, he will literally drive you out from here. Speak, now, in the ears of the people, that they should ask every man of her companion and every woman of her companion articles of silver and articles of gold." Accordingly God gave the people favor in the eyes of the Egyptians. The man Moses was too was very great in the eyes of Pharaoh's servants and in the eyes of the people. And Moses went on to say -- "This is what God has said, 'About midnight I am going out into the midst of Egypt, and every 1stborn of Pharaoh who is sitting on his throne to the1stborn of the beasts. And there will certainly occur a great outcry in all the land of Egypt, the like of which has never yet occurred -- and the like of which will never be brought about again. But against any sons of Israel will be no dog move eagerly its tongue, from man to beast -- in
order that you people may know that God can make a distinction between the Egyptians and the sons of Israel.' And all these servants of yours will certainly come down to me and prostrate themselves to me, saying, 'Go, you and all the people who follow your steps.' And after that I shall go out." With that he went out from Pharaoh in the heat of anger. Then God said to Moses -- "Pharaoh will not listen to you men, in order for my miracles to be increased in the land of Egypt." And Moses and Aaron performed all these miracles before Pharaoh -- but God would let Pharaoh's heart become obstinate, so that he did not send the sons of Israel away from his land." 12 God now said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt -- "This month will be start of the months for you. It will be the 1st of the months of the year for you. Speak to the entire assembly of Israel, saying, 'On the 10th day of this month they are to take for themselves--each one a sheep for the ancestral house, a sheep to a house. But if the household proves to be too small for the sheep, then he and his neighbor close by must take it into his house according to number of souls -- you should compute each one proportionate to his eating regards as the sheep. The sheep should prove to be a sound, a male, a year old, for you. You may pick from the young rams or from the goats. And it must continue under safeguard by you until the 14th day of this month, and the whole congregation of the assembly of Israel must slaughter it between the 2 evenings. And they must take some of the blood and splash it upon the 2 doorposts and the upper part of the doorway belonging to the houses in which they will eat it. "'And they must eat the flesh on this night. They should eat it roasted with fire and with unfermented cakes along with bitter greens. Do not eat any of it raw or boiled, cooked in water, but roast with fire, its head together with its shanks and its interior parts. And you must not leave any of it over till morning, but what is left over of it till morning you should burn with fire. And in this way you should eat it, with your hips girded, sandals on your feet and your staff in your hand-- you must eat it in haste. It is God's passover. And I ,must pass through the land of Egypt on this night and strike every 1stborn in the land of Egypt, from man to beast -- and on all the gods of Egypt I shall execute judgments. I am Jehovah. And the blood must serve as your sign upon the houses where you are -- and I must see the blood and pass over you, and the plague will not come on you as a ruination when I strike at the land of Egypt. "'And this day must serve as a memorial for you, and you must celebrate it as a festival to God throughout your generations. As a statute to time indefinte you should celebrate it. 7 days you are to eat unfermented cakes. Yes, on the 1st day you are to take away sourdough from your houses, because anyone eating what is leavened, from the 1st day down to the 7th, that soul must be cut off from Israel. And on the 1st day there is to take place for you a holy convention, and on the 7th day a holy convention. No work is to be done
on them--only what every soul needs to eat, that alone may be done for you. "'You must keep the festival of unfermented cakes because on this very day I must bring your armies out from the land of Egypt. And you must keep this day throughout your generations as a statute to time indefinite. In the 1st month of 14th day of the month -- in the evening you are to eat unfermented cakes down till 21st day of the month in the evening. 7 days no sourdough is to be found in your houses, because anyone tasting what is leavened, whether he is alien or native in the land, that soul must be cut off from assembly of Israel. Nothing leavened you are to eat. In all yout dwellings you are to eat unfermented cakes.'" Promptly Moses called all the older men of Israel and said to them -- "Draw out and take for yourselves small cattle according to your families, and slaughter passover victim. And you must take bunch of Hyssop and dip into the blood that is in the basin strike and strike upon the upper part of the doorway and upon the 2 doorposts and some of the blood that is in the basin-- and none of you should go out of the entrance of his house until morning. Then when God does pass through to plague the Egyptians and does see the blood upon the upper part of the doorway and upon the 2 doorposts, God will certainly pass over the entrance, and he will not allow the ruination to enter into your houses to plague you. "And you must keep this thing as a regulation for you and your sons to time indefinite. And it must occur that when you come into the land that God will give you, just as he has stated, then you must keep this service. It must occur when your sons say to you, "What does this service mean to you?" then you must say, 'It is sacrifice of the passover to God, who passed over the houses of sons of Israel in Egypt when he plagued the Egyptians, but he delivered our houses.'" Then the people bowed low and prostrated themselves. Subsequently, the sons of Israel went and did just as God had commanded Moses and Aaron. They did just so. And it came about that at midnight God struck every 1stborn in the land of Egypt, from 1stborn of Pharaoh sitting on his throne to the 1stborn of the captive, who was in prison hole, and every 1stborn of beast. Then Pharaoh got up at midnight, he and all his servants and all other Egyptians -- and because there was not a house where there was not one dead. At once he called Moses and Aaron by night and said -- "Get up, get out from the midst of my people, both you and the other sons of Israel and go, serve God, just as you have stated. Take both your flocks and your herds, just as you have stated, and go. Also, you must bless me besides." And the Egyptians began to urge the people in order to send them away quickly out of the land, "because," they said, "we are all as good as dead!" Consequently the people carried their flour dough before it was leavened with their kneading troughs wrapped up in their Mantles upon their shoulder. And the sons of Israel did according to the word of Moses - in that they went asking from the Egyptians articles of silver
and articles of gold and mantles. And God gave the people favor in the eyes of the Egyptians, so that these granted them what was asked -- and they stripped Egyptians. And the sons of Israel proceeded to depart Rameses for Succoth, to the number of 600,000 able bodied men on foot, besides little ones. And a vast mixed company also went up with them, as well as the flocks and herds, a very numerous stock of animals. And they began to bake flour dough that they brought out from Egypt into round cakes, unfermented cakes, because it had not leavened, for they had been able to was not leavened, for they were driven out of Egypt and was not able to linger, and too they had not prepared any provisions for themselves. And the dwelling of the sons of Israel, who had dwelt in Egypt, was 430 years. And it came about at the end of 430 years, it even came about on this very day that all the armies of God went out of the land of Egypt. It is a night of observance with regard to God for bringing them out of the land of Egypt. With regard to God this night is one for observance on the part of all the sons of Israel throughout their generations. And God went on to say to Moses and Aaron -- "This is the statute of the passover -- No foreigner may eat of it. But where there is any slave man purchased with money, you must circumcise him. Then 1st he may share in eating it. A settler and a hired laborer may not eat of it. In one house it is to be eaten. You must not take any of the flesh out of the house to some place outside. And you must not break a bone in it. All the assembly of Israel are to celebrate it. And in case an alien resident resides as an alien with you and he will actually celebrate the passover to God, let there be a circumcising of every male of his. 1st then he may come near to celebrate it -- and he must become like a native of the land, but no uncircumcised man can eat of it. One law is to exist for the native of the land.' But no uncircumcised man may eat of it. One law exist for the native and for the alien resident who is residing as an alien in your midst. So all the sons of Israel did just as God had commanded Moses and Aaron, They did just so. And it came about on this very day that God brought the sons of Israel together with their armies out of the land of Egypt. 13 And God spoke further to Moses, saying --"Sanctify to me every male 1stborn that opens each womb among the sons of Israel, among men and beasts. It is mine. Moses said to people, "remember this day which you went out of Egypt from the house of slaves because of strength of God's hand brought them out of here, so nothing leavened may be eaten. Today you are going out in the month of Abib and it must occur that when God will have brought you into the land of Canaanites and the Hittites and the Amorites and the Hivites and the Jebusites, which he swore to your ancestors to give you, a land flowing with milk and honey, then you must render this service this month. 7 days you are to eat unfermented cakes, and on the 7th day is a festival
to God. Unfermented cakes are to be eaten for the 7 days -- and nothing leavened is to be seen with you, and no sourdough is to be seen with you within all your boundaries. And you must tell your son on that day, saying, 'It is because of that which God has done to me when I came out of Egypt.' And It must serve for you as a sign upon your hand and as a memorial between your eyes, in order that God's law may prove to be in your mouth (speech) -- because by a strong hand God brought you out of Egypt. And you must keep this statute at this appointed time from year to year. "And it must occur that when God brings you into the land of the Canaanites, just as he has sworn to you and to your forefathers, and when he does give it to you, then you must devote everyone that opens womb to God, and every 1stling of a young beast, which will come to be yours. The males belong to God. Every 1stling of ass you are to redeem with a sheep, and if you will not redeem it, then you must break its neck. And every 1stborn of man among your sons you are to redeem. "And it must occur that in case your son should inquire of you later on, saying, 'What does this mean?' Then you must say to him, 'By strength of hand God brought us out of Egypt from the house of slaves. And it came about that Pharaoh showed obstinancy toward sending us away, And God proceeded to kill every 1stborn in the land of Egypt, from the 1stborn of man to the 1stborn of beast. That is why I am sacrificing to God all the males that opens the womb, and every 1stborn of my sons I redeem.' And it must serve as a sign upon your hand and as a frontlet band between your eyes, because by strength of hand God brought us out of Egypt." And it was about at the time Pharaoh's sending the people away that God did not lead of the Philistines just because it was near, for God said -- "It might be the people will feel regret when they see war and they will certainly return to Egypt. Hence God made the people go round about by the way of the wilderness of the Red Sea. But it was in battle formation that the sons of Israel went up out of the land of Egypt. And Moses was taking Joseph's bones with him, he had made sons of Israel solemnly swear, saying -- "God will without fail turn his attention to you, and you must take my bones out of here with you." And they proceeded to depart from Succoth and to encamp at Etham at the edge of wilderness. And God was going ahead of them in the daytime in a pillar cloud to lead them by the way, and in the nighttime in a pillar of fire to give them light to go into daytime and nighttime. The pillar of cloud would not move away from before the people in the daytime nor the pillar of fire in the nighttime. 14 Jehovah now spoke to Moses, saying -- "Speak to the sons of Israel, that they should turn back and encamp before Pihahiroth between Migdol and the sea in view of Baalzephon. In front of it you are to encamp by the sea. Then the Pharaoh will certainly say respecting the sons of Israel, 'they are wandering in confusion in the land. The wilderness has closed in upon them. I should indeed let Pharaoh's heart become obstinate, and he will certainly chase after them
and I shall get glory for myself by means of Pharaoh and all his military forces and the Egyptians will certainly know that I am God." Accordingly they did just that. Later it was reported to king of Egypt that the people had run away. Immediately the heart of Pharaoh as well as his servants was changed regarding the people, so that they said -- "What is this we have done, in that we have sent Israel away from slaving for us?" So he proceeded to make his war chariots ready, and he took his people with him. And he proceeded to take 600 chosen chariots and all other chariots of Egypt and warriors upon every one of them. Thus God let the heart of Pharaoh the king of Egypt become obstinate, and he went chasing after the sons of Israel, while the sons of Israel were going out with uplifted hand. And the Egyptians went chasing after them, and all the chariots horses of Pharaoh and his cavalrymen and his military forces were overtaking them while camping by the sea, by Pihahiroth in view of Baalzaphon. When Pharaoh got close by the son of Israel began to raise their eyes and here the Etyptians were marching after them, and the sons of Israel got quite afraid and began to cry out to God. And they proceeded to say to Moses -- "It is because there are no burial places at all in Egypt that you have taken us here to die in the wilderness? What is this that you have done to us in leading us out of Egypt? Is this not the word we spoke to you in Egypt, saying, 'let us alone, that we may serve Egyptians'? For it is better for us to serve the Egyptians than for us to die in the wilderness." Then Moses said to the people -- "Do not be afraid. Stand firm and see the salvation of God, which he will perform for you today. For the Egyptians whom you do see today you will not see again, no, never again. God will himself fight for you, and you yourselves will be silent." God now said to Moses -- "Why do you keep crying out to me? Speak to the sons of Israel that they should break camp. As for you, lift up your rod and stretch your hand out over the sea and split it apart, that sons of Israel may go through the midst of the sea on dry land. As for me, here I am letting the hearts of Egyptians become obstinate, that they may go in after them and that I may get glory for myself by means of Pharaoh and all his military forces, his war chariots and his cavalrymen. And the Egyptians will certainly know that I am God when I get glory for myself by means of Pharaoh, his war chariots and his cavalrymen. Then the angel of the true God who was going ahead of the camp of Israel departed and went to their rear, and the pillar of cloud departed from their van and stood in the rear of them. So it came in between the camp of the Egyptians and the camp of Israel. On the one hand it proved to be a cloud together with darkness. On the other hand it kept lighting up the night. And this group did not come near that group all night long. Moses now stretched his hand out over the sea, and God began making the sea go back by a strong east wind all night long and converting the sea basin into dry ground, and waters were being split
apart. At length the sons of Israel went through the midst of the sea on dry land, while the waters were a wall to them on their right hand and on their left. And the Egyptians took up pursuit, and all the horses of Pharaoh, his chariots and his cavalrymen began going in after them, into midst of the sea. And it came about during the morning watch that God began to look out upon the camp of the Egyptians from within the pillar of fire and cloud, and he went throwing the camp of the Egyptians into confusion. And he kept taking wheels off their chariots so that they were driving them with difficulty -- and the Egyptians began to say -- "Let us flee from any contact with Israel, because God certainly fights for them against the Egyptians." Finally God said to Moses -- "Stretch your hand out over the sea, that the waters may come back over the Egyptians, their war chariots and their cavalrymen." Moses at once stretched his hand out over the sea, and the sea began to come back to its normal condition at the approaching of morning. All the while the Egyptians were fleeing from encountering it, but God shook the Egyptians off into the midst of the sea. And the waters kept coming back. Finally they covered the war chariots and the cavalrymen belonging to all of Pharaoh's military forces and who had gone into the sea after them. Not so much as one among them was left remain. As for the sons of Israel, they walked on dry land in the midst of the seabed, and the waters were for them a wall on their right hand and on their left! Thus on that day God saved Israel from the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel got to see the Egyptians dead on the seashore. Israel also got to see the great hand that God put in action against the Egyptians -- and the people began to fear God and to put faith in God and in Moses his servant. 15 At that time Moses and the sons of Israel proceeded to sing this song to God and to say the following -- "Let me sing to God, for HE has become highly exalted. The horse and its rider he has pitched into the sea. My strength and my might is Jah (God) since he serves for my salvation. This is my God, and I shall laud him -- my father's God, and I shall raise him on high. God is a manly person of war, God is his name. Pharaoh's chariots and his military forces he has cast into the sea, And the choice of his warriors have been sunk in Red Sea. The surging waters proceeded to cover them -- down they went into the depths like a stone. Your right hand, O God, is providing itself powerful in ability, Your right hand, O God can shatter an enemy. And in the abundance of your superiority you can throw down those who rise up against you -- You send out your burning anger, it eats them up like stubble.
And by a breath from your nostrils waters were heaped up -- They stood still like a dam of floods. The rushing waters were congealed in the heart of the sea. The enemy said, 'I shall pursue! I shall overtake! I shall divide spoil! My soul will be filled with them! I shall draw my sword! My hand will drive them away!' You blew with your breath, the sea covers them -- They sank like lead in majestic waters. Who among the gods is like you, Jehovah? Who is like you, proving yourself mighty in holiness? The One to be feared with song of praise, the One doing marvels. You stretched out your right hand, the earth proceeded to swallow them up. You in your loving-kindness have led the people whom you have recovered -- You in your strength will certainly conduct them to your holy abiding place. Peoples must hear, they will be agitated -- Birth pangs must take hold on the inhabitants of Philistia. At that time the sheiks of Edom will indeed be disturbed -- As for the despots of moab, trembling will take hold on them. All the inhabitants of Canaan indeed be disheartened. Fright and dread will fall upon them. Because of the greatness of your arm they will be motionless like a stone, Until your people pass by, O God, Until the people whom you have produced pass by. You will bring them and plant them in the mountain of your inheritance, An established place that you have made ready for you to inhabit, O God, A sanctuary, O God, that your hands have established. God will rule as king to time indefinite, even forever. When Pharaoh's horses with his war chariots and his cavalrymen went into the sea. Then God brought back the waters of the sea upon them, While the sons of Israel walked on dry land through the midst of the sea." And Miriam the prophetess, Aaron's sister, porceeded to take a tambourine in her hand and all the women began going out with her with tambourine in her hand -- and all the women began going out with her with tambourines and in dances. And Miriam kept responding to the men: -- "Sing to God, for he has become highly exalted. The horse and its rider HE has thrown into the sea." Later Moses caused Israel to depart from the Red Sea and they went out to the wilderness of Shur and marched on for 3 days in the wilderness, but they did not find water. In time they came to Marah, but they were not able to drink the water from Marah because it
was bitter. That is why he called its name Marah. And the people began to murmur against Moses, saying -- "What are we to drink?" Then he cried out to God. So God directed him to a tree, and he threw it into the water and the water became sweet. There He established for them a regulation and a case for judgment and there he put them to the test. And he went on to say -- "If you will strictly listen to the voice of God your Lord and will do what is right in his eyes and indeed give ear to his commandments and keep all his regulations, I shall put none of the maladies upon you that I put upon the Egyptians, because I am God who is healing you." After that they came to Elim, where there were 12 springs of water and 70 palm trees. So they went camping there by the water. 16 Later they departed from Elim, and the entire assembly of the sons of Israel finally came to the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the 15th day of the 2nd month after their coming out of land of Egypt. And the entire assembly of the sons of Israel began to murmur against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness. And the sons of Israel kept saying to them -- "If only if we had died by God's hand in the land of Egypt while we were eating bread to satisfaction, because you have brought us out into this wilderness to put this whole congregation to death by famine." Then God said to Moses -- "Here I am raining down bread for you from the heavens -- and the people must go out and pick up each his amount day for day, in order that I may put them to the test as to whether they will walk in my law or not. And it must occur on the 6th day that they must prepare what they will bring in, and it must prove double what they keep picking up day by day." So Moses and Aaron said to all the sons of Israel -- "At evening you will certainly know that it is God who has brought you out from the land of Egypt. And in the morning you will indeed see God's glory, because he has heard your murmurings against God. And Moses continued -- "It will be when God gives you evening meat to eat and in the morning bread to satisfaction, because God heard your murmurings that you are murmuring against HIM and what are we? Your murmurings are not against us, but against God." And Moses went on to say to Aaron -- "Say to the entire assembly of the sons of Israel, 'Come near before God, because HE has heard your murmurings.'" Then it occurred that as soon as Aaron had spoken to the entire assembly of the sons of Israel, they turned and faced toward the wilderness, and, look! Lord's glory appeared in the cloud. And God spoke further to Moses, saying -- "I have heard the murmurings of the sons of Israel. Speak to them, saying, 'Between the 2 evenings you will eat meat, and in the morning you will be satisfied with bread -- and you will certainly know that I am God your Lord.'" Accordingly it occurred that in the evening the quails began to come up and cover the
camp, and in the morning there developed a layer of dew round about the camp. In time the layer of dew evaporated and here upon the surface of the wilderness there was a fine flaky thing, fine like hoarfrost frost upon the earth. When the sons of Israel got to see it, they began to say to one another -- "What is it?" For they did not know what it was. So Moses said to them -- "It is the bread that God has given you for food. This is the word that God has commanded -- 'Pick up some of it, each one in proportion to his eating. You are to take an omer (2.2 Liter = 1/10th of Ephah = 4.7 pints = 9 cups) for each individual according to the number of souls that each of you has in his tent.'" And the sons of Israel began to do so -- and they went picking up, some gathering much and some gathering little. When they would measure it by the omer (2.2 liter = approx. 9 cups), he that had gathered much had no surplus and he that gathered little had no shortage. They picked it up each one in proportion to his eating. Then Moses said to them, "Let nobody leave any of it until morning." But they did not listen to Moses. When some men would leave some of it until morning, it would breed worms and stink, so Moses became indignant at them. And they would pick it up morning by morning, each one in proportion to his eating. When the sun got hot it melted. And it came about on the 6th day that they picked up twice as much bread, 2 omer (4.4 liters = approx. 18 cups) of measures for 1 person. So all the chieftains of the assembly came and reported to Moses. At that he said to them -- "It is what God has spoken. Tomorrow there will be a sabbath observance of a holy sabbath to God. What you can bake, bake, and what you can boil, boil, and all the surplus that there is save it up for you as something to be kept until morning." Accordingly they saved it up until morning just as Moses had commanded -- and it did not stink nor did maggots develop in it. Then Moses said -- "Eat it today, because today is a sabbath to God. Today you will not find it in the field. 6 days you will pick it up, but on the 7th day is a sabbath. On it none will form. However, it came about on the 7th day that some of the people did go out to pick it up, but they found none. Consequently God said to Moses -- "How long must you people refuse to keep my commandments and my laws? Mark the fact that God has given you the sabbath. That is why he is giving you on the 6th day the bread for 2 days. Keep sitting each one in his own place. Let nobody go out from his locality on the 7th day." And the people proceeded to observe the sabbath on the 7th day. And the house of Israel began to call its name "manna." And it was white like the coriander seed and taste was like that of flat cakes with honey. Then Moses said -- "This is the word that God has commanded, 'Fill an omer (about 4.7 pints) measure of it as something to be kept throughout your generations, in order that they may see the bread that I made you eat in the wilderness when I was bringing you out of the land of Egypt.'" So Moses said to Aaron -- "Take a jar and put in it an omerful of manna and deposit it before God as something to be kept throughout your generations." Just as God had commanded Moses, Aaron proceeded to deposit
it before the Testimony as something to be kept. And the sons of Israel ate the manna 40 years, until their coming to a land inhabited. The manna was what they ate until their coming to the frontier of the land of Canaan. Now an omer is a 10th (1/10) of an ephah measure (22 liters or 46.5 pints). 17 And the entire assembly of the sons of Israel proceeded to depart from the wilderness of Sin by stages, which they took according to the order of God, and went camping at Rephidim. But there was no water for the people to drink. And the people fell quarreling with Moses and saying -- "Give us water that we may drink." But Moses said to them -- "Why are we quarreling with me? Why do you keep putting God to the test?" And the people went on thirsting there for water, and people kept murmuring against Moses and saying -- "Why is it that you have brought us up out of Egypt to put us and our sons and livestock to death by thirst?" Finally Moses cried out to God, saying -- "What shall I do with this people? A little longer and they will stone me!" Then God said to Moses -- "Pass in front of the people and take with you some of the older men of Israel and your rod with which you struck the Nile River. Take it in your hand and you must walk on.
And Look! I am standing before you there on the rock in Horeb. And you must strike the rock, and water must come out of it, and the people must drink it." Subsequently Moses did so under the eyes of older men of Israel. So he called the name of the place Massah and Meribah, because of the quarreling of the sons of Israel and because of their putting God to the test, saying -- "Is God in our midst or not?" And the Amalekites proceeded to come and fight against Israel in Raphidim. At this Moses said to Joshua -- "Choose men for us and go out, fight against Amalekites. Tomorrow I am stationing myself upon the top of the hill, with the rod of the true God in my hand." Then Joshua did just as Moses had said to him, in order to fight against Amalekites -- and Moses, Aaron and Hur went up to the top of the hill. And It occurred that as soon as Moses would lift his hand up, the Israelites proved superior, but as soon as he let down his hand, the Amalekites proved to be superior. When the hands of Moses were heavy, then they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat upon it -- and Aaron and Hur supported his hands, one the this side and the other on that side, so that his hands held steady until the sun set. Hence Joshua vanquished (conquered, defeated) Amalek and his people with the edge of his sword. God now said to Moses -- "Write this as a memorial in the book and propound it in Joshua's ears, 'I shall completely wipe out the remembrance of Amalek from under the heavens.'" And Moses proceeded to build an altar and to call its name Johovahnissi, saying -- "Because a hand is against a throne of Jah (Lord) God will have a war with Amalek from generation to generation." 18 Now Jethro the priest of Midian, Moses' father-in-law, got the hear about all that God had done for Moses and for Israel his people, how God had brought Israel out of Egypt.
So Jethro, Moses' father in law took up Zipporah, Moses's wife, after the sending of her away, and her 2 sons, the name of one of whom was Gershom, "because," he said, "an alien resident I have come to be in foreign land" -- and the name of the other was Eliezer, "because, " to quote him, "the God of my father is my helper in that he delivered me from Pharaoh's sword." So Jethro, Moses' father in law, and his sons and his wife came to Moses into the wilderness where he was camping at the mountain of the true God. Then he sent word to Moses -- "I, your father in law, Jethro, and come to you, and also your wife, and her 2 sons with her." At once Moses went out to meet his father in law and he proceeded to prostrate himself and to kiss him -- and they each one began asking how the other was getting along. After that they went into the tent. And Moses went to relating to his father in law all that God had done to Pharaoh and Egypt on account of Israel, and all the hardship that had befallen them on the way, and yet God was delivering them. Then Jethro felt glad over all the good that God had done for Israel in that he had delivered them from the hand of Egypt. Consequently Jethro said -- "Blessed be God, who has delivered you from the hand of Egypt and from the hand of Pharaoh, and who has delivered the people from under the hand of Egypt. Now I know God is greater than all the other gods by reason of this affair which they acted presumptuously against them." Then Jethro, Moses' father in law, took a burnt offering and sacrifices for God -- and Aaron and all the older men of Israel came to eat bread with Moses' father in law, before the true God. And it came about on the next day that Moses sat down as usual to serve as judge for the people, and the people kept standing before Moses from the morning till the evening. And Moses father in law got to see all that he was doing for the people. So he said -- "What kind of business is this you are doing for the people? Why do you alone continue sitting and all the people continue taking their stand before you from morning till evening?" Then Moses said to his father in law -- "Because the people keep coming to me to inquire of God. In the event that they have a case arise, it must come to me, and I must judge between the one party and the other, and I must make known the decisions of the true God and his laws." At this Moses's father in law said to him -- "It is not good the way you are doing. You will surely wear out, both you and this people who are with you, because this business is too big a load for you. You are unable to do it by yourself. Now listen to my voice, I shall advice, you, and God will prove to be with you. You yourself serve as representative for the people before the true God, and you yourself must bring the cases to the true God. And you must warn them of what the regulations and the laws are, and you must make them known to them the way in which they should walk and the work they should do. But you yourself should select out of all the people capable men, fearing God, trustworthy men, hating unjust profit, and you must set these over them as chiefs over 1000s, chiefs 100s, chiefs over 50s and
chiefs over 10s. And they must judge the people on every proper occasion and it must occur that every big case they will bring to you, but every small case they themselves will handle as judges. So make it lighter for yourself and they must carry the load with you. If you do this very thing, and God has commanded you, you will then certainly will be able to stand it and, besides, this people will all come to their own place in peace." Immediately Moses listened to the voice of his father in law and did all he had said. And Moses proceeded to choose capable men out of all Israel and to give them positions as heads over the people, as chiefs of 1000s, chiefs of 100s, chiefs of 50s, and chiefs of 10s. And they judged the people on every proper occasion. A hard case they would bring to Moses, but every small case they themselves would handle as judges. After that Moses saw his father in law off, and he went his way to his land. 19 In the 3rd month after the sons of Israel came out of the land of Egypt, on the same day, they came into the wilderness of Sinai. And they proceeded to pull away from Rephidim and come into the wilderness of Sinai and to encamp in the wilderness, and Israel went camping there in front of the mountain. And Moses went up to the true God and Lord began to call to him out of the mountain, saying-- "This is what you are to say to the house of Jacob and to tell the sons of Israel, 'You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, that I might carry you on wings of eagles and bring you to myself. And now if you will strictly obey my voice and I will indeed keep my covenant, then you will certainly become my special property out of all other peoples, because the whole earth belongs to me. And you yourselves will become to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.' These are the words that you say to the sons of Israel." So Moses came and called the older men of the people and set before them all these words that God had commanded him. After that all the people answered unanimously and said, "All that God has spoken we are willing to do." Immediately Moses took back the words of the people to God. At this God said to Moses -- "Look! I am coming to you in a dark cloud, in order that the people may hear when I speak with you, and that in you also they may put faith to time indefinite." Then Moses reported the words of people to God. And God went on to say to Moses -- "Go to the people, and you must sanctify them today and tomorrow, and they must wash their mantles. And they must prove ready for the 3rd day, because on the 3rd day God will come down before the eyes of all the people upon the Mount Sinai. And you must set bounds for the people round about, saying, 'Guard yourselves against going up the mountain, and do not touch the edge of it. Anybody touching the mountain will certainly be put to death. No hand is to touch him, because he will positively be stoned or will positively be shot through. Whether beast or man, he will not live. At the blowing of the ram's horn they themselves may come up to the mountain." Then Moses went down from the mountain to the people, and he set about sanctifying
the people, and they engaged in washing their mantles. Accordingly he said to the people -- "Get ready during the 3 days. Do not you men come near a woman." On the 3rd day when it became morning it came about that thunders and lightnings began occurring, and a heavy cloud upon the mountain and a very loud sound of a horn, so that all the people who were in the camp began to tremble. Moses now brought people out of the camp to meet the true God, and they went taking their stand at the base of the mountain. And Mount Sinai smoked all over, due to the fact that God came down upon it in fire -- and the smoke kept ascending like the smoke of a kiln, and the whole mountain was trembling very much. When the sound of the horn because continually louder and louder, Moses began to speak, and the true God began to answer him with a voice. So God came down upon Mount Sinai to the top to the mountain. Then God called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up. God now said to Moses -- "Go down, warn the people, that they do not try to break through to God to take a look and many of them have to fall. And let priests also who regularly come near to God sanctify themselves, that God may not break out upon them." At this Moses said to God -- " The people are not able to come up to Mount Sinai, because you yourself already warned us, saying, 'Set bounds for the mountain and make it sacred.'" However, God said to him -- "Go, descend, and you must come up, you and Aaron with you -- but let the priests and the people break through to come up to God, that he may not break out upon them." Accordingly Moses descended to the people and told them. 20 And God proceeded to speak all these words, saying -- "I am God your Lord, who have brought you out of the land of Egypt, out the house of slaves. You must not have any other gods against my face. "You must not make for yourself a carved image or a form like anything that is in the heavens above or that is on the earth underneath or is in the waters under the earth. You must not bow down to them nor be induced to serve them, because I am God your Lord am a God exacting exclusive devotion, bringing punishing for the error of fathers upon sons, upon the 3rd generation and upon the 4th generation, in the case those who hate me -- but exercising loving kindness toward the 1000th generation in the case of those who love me and keep my commandments. "You must not take up the name of God your Lord in a worthless way for God will not leave the one unpunished who takes up his name in worthless way. "Remember the sabbath day to hold it sacred, you are to render service and you must do all the work 6 days. But the 7th day is a sabbath to God your Lord. You must not do any work, you nor your son nor your daughter, your slave man nor your slave girl nor your domestic animal nor your alien resident who is inside your gates. For in 6 days God made the heavens
and the earth, the sea and everything that is in them, and HE proceeded to rest on the 7th day. That is why God blessed the sabbath day and proceeded to make it sacred. "Honor your father and your mother in order that your days may prove long upon the ground that God your Lord is giving you. "You must not murder. "You must not commit adultery. "You must not steal. "You must not testify falsely against your fellowman. "You must not desire your fellowman's house. You must not desire your fellowman's wife, nor his slave man nor his slave girl nor his bull nor his ass nor anything that belongs to your fellowman." Now all the people were seeing the thunders and lightning flashes and the sound of the horn and the mountain smoking. When the people got to see it, then they quivered and stood at a distance. and they began to say to Moses -- "You speak with us, and let us listen -- but let not God speak with us for fear we may die." So Moses said to the people -- "Do not be afraid because, for the sake of putting you to the test the true God has come, and in order that the fear of him may continue before your faces that you may not sin." And the people kept standing at a distance, but Moses went near to the dark cloud mass where the true God was. And God went on to say to Moses -- "This is what you are to say to the sons of Israel, ''You yourselves 'have seen that it was from the heavens I spoke with you. You must not make along with me gods of silver, and you must not make gods of gold for yourselves. An altar of ground you are to make for me, and you must make sacrifices upon it your burnt offerings and communion sacrifices, your flock and your herd. In Every place where I shall cause my name to be remembered, I shall come to you and shall certainly bless you. And if you should make an altar of stones for me, you must not build them as hewn stones. In the event that you do wield your chisel upon it, then you will profane it. And you must not go up by steps to my altar, that your private parts may not be exposed upon it. 21 "And these are the judicial decisions that you are to set before them -- "In case you should buy a Hebrew slave, he will be a slave 6 years, but in the 7th he will go out as one set free without charge. If he should come in by himself, by himself he will go out. But if he is the owner of a wife, then his wife must go out with him. But if his master should give him a wife and she does bear him sons or daughters, the wife and her children will become her master's and he will go out by himself. But if the slave should insistently say, 'I really love my master, his wife and his sons and do not want to go out as one set free.' then his master must bring him near to the true God and must bring him up against the door or the doorpost -- and his master must pierce his ear with an awl, and he must be his slave to him indefinite. "And in case a man should sell his daughter as a slave girl, she will not go out in the way that the slave men go out. If she is a displeasing in the eyes
of her master so that he does not designate her as a concubine but causes her to be redeemed, he will not be entitled to sell her to foreign people in his treachersouly dealing with her. And it should be to his son that he designates her, he is to do to her according to the due right of daughters. If he should take another wife for himself, her sustenance, her clothing and her marriage due are not to be diminished. If he will not render these 3 things to her, then she must go out for nothing, without paying money. "One who strikes a man so that he actually dies is to be put to death without fail. But when one does not lie in wait and the true God lets it happen at his hand, then I must fix for you a place where he can flee. And in case a man becomes heated against his fellow to the point of killing him with craftiness, you are to take him even from being at my altar to die. And one who strikes his father and his mother is to be put to death without fail. "And one who kidnaps a man and who actually sells him or found in whose hand he has been found is to be is put to death without fail. "And one who calls down evil upon his father and his mother is to be put to death without fail. "And in case of men should get into a quarrel and one does strike his fellow with a stone or a hoe and he does not die but must keep to his bed -- if he gets up and does walk about out of doors upon some support of his, then the one who struck him must be free from punishment -- he will make compensation only for the time lost from that one's work until he gets him completely healed. "And in case a man strikes his slave man or his girl with a stick and he that one actually dies under his hand, that one is to be avenged without fail. However, if he lingers for a day or 2 days, he is not to be avenged, because he is his money. "And in case of men should struggle with each other and they really hurt a pregnant woman and her children do come out but no fatal accident occurs, he is to have damages imposed upon him without fail according to what the owner of the woman lay upon him -- and he must give it through justices. But if a fatal accident should occur, then you must give soul for soul, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, branding for branding, wound for wound, blow for blow. "And in case of a man should strike the eye of his slave man or the eye of his slave girl and he really ruins it, he is to send him away as one set free in compensation for his eye. And if it should the tooth of his slave man or the tooth of his slave girl that he knocks out, he is to send him away as one set free in compensation for the tooth. "And in case a bull should gore a man or woman and that one actually dies, the bull is to be stoned without fail, but its flesh is not to be eaten -- and the owner of the bull is free of punishment. But if a bull was formerly in the habit of goring and warning was served on its owner but he would not keep it under guard, and it did put a man or woman to death, the bull is to be stoned and also its owner is to be put to death. If a ransom should be imposed upon him, then he must give the redemption price for his soul according to all that may be
imposed upon him. Whether it gored a son or gored a daughter, it is to be done to him according to this judicial decision. If it was a slave man or a slave girl that the bull gored, he will give the price of 30 shekels to that one's master, and the bull will be stoned. "And in case a man should opens a pit or should excavate a pit, and should not cover it, and a bull or an ass does fall into it, the owner of the pit is to make compensation. The price he is to return to its owner, and the dead animal will become his own. And in case a man's bull should hurt another's bull and it does die, then they must sell the live bull and divide the price paid for it -- and also the dead one they should divide. Or if it was known that a bull was in the habit of goring formerly but its owner would not keep it under guard, he should without fail make compensation with bull for bull, and the dead one will become his own. 22 "In case a man should steal a bull or a sheep and he does slaughter it or sell it, he is to compensate with 5 of the herd for the bull and 4 of the flock for the sheep ("If a thief should be found in the act of breaking in and he does get struck and die, there is no guilt from bloodshed for him, but if the sun shined upon him then there is bloodguilt for him. If the sun has shone forth upon him, there is no bloodguilt for him.) "He is to make compensation without fail. If he has nothing, then he must be sold for the things he stole. If there should be unmistakably found in his hand what was stolen, from bull to ass and to sheep, alive, he is to make double compensation. "If a man causes a field or a vineyard to be grazed over and he does send out his beasts of burden and cause a consuming in another field, he is to make compensation with best of his own field or with the best of his own vineyard. "In case a fire should spread out and it does catches thorns, and sheaves or standing grain or a field gets consumed, the one who started the fire is to make compensation without fail for what was burned. "In case a man should give his fellow money or articles to keep, but it gets stolen from the man's house, if the thief should be found, he is to make double compensation. If the thief should not be found, then the owner of the house must be brought near to the true God to see whether he did not put his hand upon the goods of his fellow. As regards any case of transgression, concerning a bull, an ass, a sheep, a garment, anything lost of which he may say, "This is it!" the case of them both is to come to the true God. The one whom God will pronounce wicked is to make double compensation to his fellow. "In case a man should give his fellow an ass or bull or sheep or any domestic animal to keep, and it does not die or get maimed or gets led off while nobody is looking, an oath by God is to take place between them both that he did not put his hand on the goods of his fellow -- and their owner must accept it, and their owner is not to make compensation. But if they should for a fact be stolen from him, he is to make compensation to their owner. If it should for a fact be torn by a wild beast, he is to bring it as evidence for something torn by a wild beast he is not to compensate. "But in case anybody should ask for something of his fellow, and it does get maimed
or die while its owner is not with it, he is to make compensation without fail. If its owner is with it, he is not to make compensation. If it is hired, it must come in its hire. "Now in case a man seduces a virgin who is not engaged, and he actually lies down with her, he is to obtain her without fail as his wife for the purchase price. If her father flatly refuses to give her to him, he is to pay over the money at the rate of purchase money for virgins. "You must not preserve a sorceress alive. "Anyone lying down with a beast is positively put to death. "One who sacrifices to any gods but God alone is to be devoted to destruction. "And you must not maltreat an alien resident or oppress him, for you people became alien residents in the land of Egypt. "You people must not afflict any widow or fatherless boy. If you should afflict him at all, then if he cries out to me at all, I shall unfailingly hear his outcry -- and my anger will indeed blaze, and I shall certainly kill you with the sword, and your wives must become widows and your sons fatherless boys. "If you should lend money to my people, to the afflicted alongside you, you must not become like a usurer to him. You must not lay interest upon him. "If you should at all seize the garment of your fellow as a pledge, you are to return it to him at the setting of the sun. For it is his only covering, it is his mantle for his skin. In what will he lie down? And it must occur that he will cry out to me, and I shall certainly hear, because I am gracious. "You must not call evil upon God nor curse a chieftain among your people. "Your full produce and the overflow of your press you must not give hesitantly. The 1stborn of your sons you are to give to me (God). The way you are to do with your bull and your sheep is this-- 7 days it will continue with its mother. On the 8th day, you are to give it to me. "And you should prove yourselves holy men to me -- and you must not eat flesh in the field that is something torn by a wild beast. You should throw it to the dogs. 23 "You must not take up an untrue report. Do not cooperate with a wicked one by becoming a witness who schemes violence. You must not follow after the crowd for evil ends -- and you must not testify over a crowd to pervert justice. For the poor one, you must not show preference in controversy so as to turn aside with the crowd in order to pervert justice. As for the lowly one, you must not show preference in a controversy of his. "Should you come upon your enemy's bull or his ass going astray, you are to return it without fail to him. Should you see the ass of someone who hates you lying down under its load, then you must refrain from leaving him. With him you are without fail to get it loose. "You are not pervert the judicial decision of your poor man in his controversy. "You are to keep far away from false word. And do not kill the innocent and the righteous, for I shall not declare wicked one righteous.
"You are not to accept a bribe, for the bribe blinds the clear-sighted men and distort the words of righteous men. "And you must not oppress an alien resident, as yourselves have known the soul of the alien resident, because you became alien residents in the land of Egypt. "And for 6 years you are to sow your land with seed and you must gather its produce. But the 7th year you are to leave it uncultivated and you must let it lie fallow (unplowed), and the poor one of your people must eat of it -- and what's left over by them the wild beasts of the field are to eat. That is the way you are to do with your vineyards and olive grove. "6 days you are to do your work -- but on the 7th day you are to desist (stop), in order that your bull and your ass may rest, and the son of your slave girl and the alien resident may refresh themselves. "And you are to be on your guard respecting all that I have said to you -- And you must not mention name of other gods. It should not be heard from your mouth. "3 times in the year you are to celebrate a festival to me. You will keep the festival of unfermented cakes. You will eat unfermented cakes 7 days, just as I have commanded you, at the appointed time in the month of Abib (1st month--Abib) because in it you came out of Egypt. And they must not appear before me empty handed. Also, the festival of harvest of 1st ripe fruits of your labors, of what you sow in the field -- and the festival of ingathering at the outgoing (end) of the year, when you gather in your labors from the field. On 3 occasions in the year every male of yours will appear before the true Lord, Jehovah. "You must not sacrifice along with what is leavened the blood of my sacrifice. And the fat of my festival should not stay overnight until morning. "The best of the 1st ripe fruits of your ground you are to bring to the house of Jehovah your God. "You must not boil kid (young goat) in mother's milk. "Here I am sending an angel ahead of you to keep you on the road and to bring you into the place that I have prepared. Watch yourself because of him and obey his voice. Do not behave rebelliously against him, for he will not pardon your transgression (wrong doing, sin) -- because my name is within him. However, if you strictly obey his voice and really do all that I shall speak, then I shall certainly be hostile to your enemies and harass those who harass you. For my angel will go ahead of you and will indeed bring you to Amorites and the Hittites and the Perizzites and the Canaanites and the Hivites and Jebusites -- and I shall certainly efface (erase) them. You must not bow down to their gods or be induced (persuaded) to serve them, and you must not make anything like their works, but you will without fail throw them down and you will without fail break their sacred pillars. And you must serve God your Lord, and he will certainly bless your bread and water -- and I shall indeed turn malady (sickness) away from your midst. Neither a woman suffering an abortion nor a barren woman will exist in your land. I shall make the number of your days full. "And I shall send the fright of me ahead of you, and I shall certainly throw into confusion
all the people among whom you come, and I shall indeed give the back of the neck of all your enemies to you. And I will send the feeling of dejection ahead of you, and it will simply drive the Hivites, the Canaanites and the Hittites out from before you. I shall not drive them out from before you in one year, that the land may not become a desolate waste and the wild beasts of the field really multiply against you. Little by little I shall drive them out from before you, until you become fruitful and really take the possession of the land. "And I will fix the boundary from the Red Sea to the sea of the Philistines and from the wilderness to the River, because I shall give into your hand the inhabitants of the land, and you will certainly drive them out from before yourself. You are not to conclude a covenant with them or their gods. They should not dwell in your land, that they may not cause you to sin against me. In case you should serve their gods, it would become a snare to you." 24 "And to Moses he said-- "Go up to God, you and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu and 70 of the older men of Israel, and you must bow down from a distance. And Moses by himself must approach God -- but they should not approach, and the people should not go up with him." Then Moses came and related to the people all the words of God, and all the judicial decisions, and all the people answered with one voice and said -- "All the words that God has spoken we are willing to do." Accordingly Moses wrote down all the words of God. Then he got up early in the morning and built at the foot of the mountain an altar and 12 pillars corresponding with the 12 tribes of Israel. After that he sent young men of the sons of Israel and they offered up burnt offerings and sacrificed bulls as sacrifices, as communion sacrifices to God. Then Moses took half the blood and put it in bowls, and half the blood he sprinkled upon the altar. Finally he took the book of the covenant and read it in the ears of the people. Then they said -- "All that God has spoken we are willing to do and be obedient." So Moses took the blood and sprinkled it upon the people and said -- 'Here is the blood of the covenant with you as respects all these words." And Moses and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu and 70 of the older men of Israel proceeded to go up, and they got to see the God of Israel. And under his feet there were what seemed like work of sapphire flagstones and like the very heavens for purity. And he didn't put out his hand against the distinguished men of the sons of Israel, but they got a vision of the true God and ate and drank. God now said to Moses -- "Come up to me in the mountain and stay there, as I want to give you the stone tablets and the law and the commandment that I must write in order to teach them." So Moses and Joshua his minister got up and Moses went up into the mountain of the true God. But to the older men he had said -- "You wait for us in this place until we return to you. And, look! Aaron and Hur are with you. Whoever has a case at law, let him approach them." Thus Moses went up into the mountain while the cloud was covering the mountain.
And God's glory continued to reside upon Mount Sinai, and the cloud continued to cover it for 6 days. At length on the 7th day he called to Moses from the midst of the cloud. And to the eyes of the sons of Israel the sight of God's glory was like a devouring fire on the mountaintop. Then Moses entered into the midst of the cloud and went on up the mountain. And Moses continued in the mountain 40 days and 40 nights. 25 And God proceeded to speak to Moses, saying -- "Speak to the sons of Israel, that they may take up the contribution for me -- From every man whose heart that incites him you people are to take up the contribution of mine. And this is the contribution that you are to take up from them -- gold and silver and copper, and blue thread, and wool dyed reddish purple, and coccus scarlet material (natural crimson dye), and fine linen and goats hair, and ram skins dyed red, sealskins, and acacia wood -- oil for the luminary (oil for the light/lamp), balsam oil for the anointing oil and for the perfumed incense -- and onyx stones and setting stones for the ephod and for the breastpiece (garments worn by high priest). And they must make a sanctuary (safe haven) for me, as I must tabernacle (God worship tent or building) in the midst of them. According to all that I am showing you as the pattern of the tabernacle and pattern of all its furnishings, that is the way you are to make it. "And they must make an Ark made of acacia wood, 2 1/2 cubits (3 feet and 9 inches. 1 cubit is 18 inches.) its length, a cubit and a half (1 1/2 cubits = 2 feet 3 inches) its width and a cubit and half its height (2 feet 3 inches). And you must overlay it with pure gold. Inside and outside you are to over lay it. and you must make a border of gold round about upon it. And you must put 4 rings of gold for it and put them above its 4 feet, with 2 rings upon the one side of it and 2 rings upon its other side. And you must make poles of acacia wood and overlay them with gold. And you must put poles through the rings upon the sides of the Ark in order to carry the Ark with them. In the rings of the Ark, the poles are to stay. They are not to be removed from it. And you must place in the Ark the testimony that I shall give you. "And you must make a cover of pure gold, 2 1/2 cubits (3 feet and 9 inches) its length and a cubit and a half (1 1/2 cubits is 2 feet and 3 inches) its width. And you must make 2 cherubs (angels) of gold. Of hammered work you are to make them at both ends of the cover. And make one cherub on this end and one cherub on that end. On the cover you are to make cherubs at its two ends. And the cherubs must be spreading out their 2 wings upward, screening over the cover with their wings, with their faces one toward the other. Toward the cover the faces of the cherubs should be. And you must place the cover above upon the Ark, and in the Ark you will place the testimony that I shall give you. And I will present myself to you there and speak with you from above the cover, from between the 2 cherubs that are upon the ark of the testimony, even all that I shall command you for the sons of Israel. "And you must make a table with acacia wood, 2 cubits (3 feet) its length and a cubit (1 cubit is 18 inches = 1 1/2 feet) its width and a cubit and a half (Approx. 2' 3") its height. And you must overlay it in pure gold, and you must make for it a border of gold round about. And you must make for it a rim of a handbreath (width of a hand) round about, and you must make a border of gold for
its rim round about. And you must make for it 4 rings of gold and place the rings on the 4 corners that are for the 4 feet. The rings should be close by the rim as supports for the poles to carry the table. And you must make the poles of acacia wood and overlay them with gold, and they must carry the table with them. "And you must make its dishes and its cups and its pitchers and its bowls with which they will pour libations (drink poured as offering to God). And you must make them out of pure gold. And you must put the showbread upon the table before me constantly. "And you must make a lampstand of pure gold. Of hammered work the lampstand is to be made. Its base, its branches, its cups, its knobs and its blossoms are to proceed out from it. And 6 branches are running out from its sides, 3 branches of the lampstand from its one side and 3 branches of the lampstand from its other side. 3 cups shaped like flowers of almond are on the one set of branches, with knobs and blossoms alternating, and 3 cups shaped like flowers of almond on the other set of branches, with knobs and blossoms alternating. This is the way it is with the 6 branches running out from the lampstand. And on the lampstand are 4 cups shaped like flowers of almond, with its knobs and its blossoms alternating, and the knob under 2 branches is out of it and the knob under the 2 other branches is out of it and the knob under 2 more branches is out of it, for the 6 branches running out from the lampstand. Their knobs and their branches are to proceed out from it. All of it is one piece of hammered work of pure gold. And you must make 7 lamps for it -- and the lamps must be lit up, and they must shine upon the area in front of it. And its snuffers (snout) and its fire holders are of pure gold. Of a talent of pure gold he should make it with all these utensils of it. And see that you make them after their pattern that was shown to you in the mountain. 26 "And the tabernacle (God worshipping tent or building) you are to make of 10 tent cloths of fine twisted linen and blue thread and wool dyed reddish purple and coccus scarlet material (natural crimson dye). With cherubs (angels), the work of an embroiderer, you will make them. The length of each tent cloths is 28 cubits (approx. 42 feet) and the width of each tent cloth is 4 cubits (approx. 6 feet). There is 1 measure for all the tent cloths. 5 tent cloths are to form a series with the one joined to the other. And you must make loops of blue thread upon the edge of the 1 tent cloth at the end of the series -- and you are to do the same upon the edge of the outermost tent cloth at the other place of junction (connection). You will make 50 loops on the 1 tent cloth, and 50 loops you will make on the extremity of the tent cloth that is at the other place of junction, the loops being opposite one to the other. And you make 50 hooks of gold and join the tent cloths one to the other by means of the hooks, and it must become one tabernacle. "And you must make cloths of goat's hair for the tent upon the tabernacle. You will make 11 tent cloths. The length of each tent cloth is 30 cubits (45 feet), and the width of each tent cloths is 4 cubits (6 feet). There is 1 measure for the 11 tent cloths. And you must join
5 tent cloths by themselves and 6 tent cloths by themselves, and you must fold double the 6th tent cloth at the forefront of the tent. And you must make 50 loops upon the edge of the 1 tent cloth, the outermost one in the series, and 50 loops upon the edge of the tent cloth at the other place of junction. And you must make 50 hooks of copper and put the hook in the loops and join the tent together, and it must become one. And what remains over of the cloths of the tent) is over an overhanging. 1/2 of the tent cloth that remains over is to hang over the back of the tabernacle. And the cubit (approx. 18 inches) on this side and the cubit on that side in what remains over in the length of the cloths of the the tent will serve as an overhanging on the sides of the tabernacle, to cover it on this side and on that. "And you must make a covering for the tent of ram skins dyed red, and a covering of sealskins up on top. And you must make the panel frames for the tabernacle of acacia wood, standing on end. 10 cubits (15 feet) is length of a panel frame and a cubit and a half (1 1/2 cubit = 2' 3") is the width of each panel frame. Each panel frame has 2 tenons (joints) joined one to the other. That is the way you will do with all the panel frames of the tabernacle. And you must make panel frames for the tabernacle, 20 panel frames for the side toward the Negeb, to the south. "And you will make 40 socket pedestals of silver under the 20 panel frames -- 2 socket pedestals under the 1 panel frame with its 2 tenons, and 2 socket pedestals under the other panel frame with its 2 tenons. And for the other side of tabernacle, the northern side --20 panel frames, and their 40 sockets pedestals of silver, 2 socket pedestals under the 1 panel frame and 2 socket pedestals under the other panel frame. And for the rear sections of the tabernacle to the west you will make 6 panel frames. And you will make 2 panel frames as corner posts of the tabernacle on its 2 rear sections. And they should be duplicates at the bottom, and together they should be duplicates up to the top of each one at the 1st ring. That is the way it should be for the 2 of them. They will serve as 2 corner posts. And there must be 8 panel frames and their socket pedestals of silver, 16 pedestals, 2 socket pedestals under the 1 panel frame and 2 socket pedestals under the other panel frame. "And you must make bars of acacia wood, 5 for the panel frames of the one side of the tabernacle, and 5 bars for the panel frames of the other side of the tabernacle and 5 bars for the panel frames of the side of the tabernacle for the 2 rear sections to the west. And the middle bar at the center of the panel frames is running through from end to end. "And you will overlay the panel frames with gold, and their rings you will make of gold as supports for the bars -- and you must overlay the bars with gold. And you must set up the tabernacle according to the plan of it that you have been shown in the mountain. "And you must make a curtain of blue thread and wool dyed reddish purple and coccus scarlet material (natural crimson dye) and fine twisted linen. He will make it with cherubs (angels), the work of an embroiderer. And you must put it upon 4 pillars of acacia overlaid
with gold. Their pegs (bolts) are of gold. They are upon 4 socket pedestals of silver. And you must put the curtain under the hooks and bring the ark of the testimony there within the curtain -- and the curtain must make a division for you between the Holy and the Most Holy. And you must put the cover upon the ark of the testimony in the Most Holy. "And you must set the table outside the curtain, and the lampstand opposite the table on the side of the tabernacle toward the south -- and the table you will put on the north side. And you must make a screen for the entrance of the tent of blue thread and wool dyed reddish purple and coccus scarlet material and fine twisted linen, the work of a weaver. And you must make for the screen 5 pillars of acacia and overlay them with gold. Their pegs are of gold. And you must cast for them 5 socket pedestals of copper. 27 "And you must make the altar of acacia wood, 5 cubits (7 1/2 feet) its length and 5 cubits (7 1/2 feet) its width. The altar should be 4square, and it's height 3 cubits (4 1/2 feet). And you must make its horns upon its 4 corners. Its horns will proceed out of it, and you must overlay it with copper. And you must make its cans for clearing away its fatty ashes, and its shovels, and its bowls, and its forks, and its fire holders -- and you will make all its utensils of copper. And you mast make a grating for it, a network of copper -- you must make upon the net 4 rings of copper at its 4 extremities. And you must put it under the altar's rim down within, and the net must be toward the center of the altar. And you must make poles for the altar, its poles being of acacia wood, and you must overlay them with copper. And its poles must be put into the rings, and the poles must be upon the 2 sides of the altar when carrying it. A hollow (empty) chest of planks you will make it. Just as he showed you in the mountain, so they will make it. "And you must make the courtyard of the tabernacle. For the side toward the Negeb, to the south, the courtyard has hangings of fine twisted linen, a 100 cubits (150 feet) being the length for the one side. And its 20 pillars and their 20 socket pedestals are of copper. The pegs of the pillars and their joints are of silver. So, too, it is for the north side in length, the hangings being for a 100 cubits (150 feet) of length, and its 20 pillars and their 20 socket pedestals being of copper, the pegs of the pillars and their joints of silver. As for the width of the courtyard, on the west side of the hangings are of 50 cubits (approx. 75 feet), their pillars 10 cubits (15 feet), and their socket pedestals 10 cubits (15 feet). And the width of the courtyard on the east side toward the sunrising is 50 cubits (75 feet). And there are 15 cubits (22 1/2 feet) of hangings to one side, their pillars being 3 cubits (4 1/2 feet), and their socket pedestals 3 cubits (4 1/2 feet). And for the other side there are 15 cubits (22 1/2 feet) of hangings, their pillars being 3 (cubits, 4 1/2 feet) and their socket pedestals 3 (cubits, 4 1/2 feet). "And for the gate of the courtyard there is a screen 20 cubits (30 feet) long, of blue thread, and wool dyed reddish purple and coccus scarlet (natural crimson dye) material and fine twisted linen, the work of a weaver, their pillars being 4 cubits (6 feet) and their socket pedestals 4 cubits (6 feet). All the pillars of the courtyard round about have fastenings of silver, and their pegs of silver but their socket
pedestals are of copper. The length of courtyard is 100 cubits (150 feet), width 50 cubits (75 feet), height 5 cubits (7 1/2 feet) of fine twisted linen, and their socket pedestals being of copper. And all the utensils of the tabernacle in all its service, and all the tent pins, and all the pins of the courtyard are of copper. "As for you, you are to command (order) the sons of Israel that they get for you pure, beaten olive oil for the lunimary, in order to light up the lamp constantly. In the tent of meeting, outside the curtain, that is by the Testimony, Aaron and his sons will set it in order from evening till morning before God. It is a statute (regulation, law, rule) to time indefinite for their generations, to be performed by the sons of Israel. 28 "And as for you, bring near to yourself Aaron your brother and his sons with him from midst of the sons of Israel that he may act as priest to me, Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar, the sons of Aaron. And you must make holy garments for Aaron your brother, for glory and beauty. And you yourself are to speak to all the ones wise with a heart, that I have filled with the spirit of wisdom, and they must make Aaron's garments for sanctifying him, that he may act as a priest to me. "And these are the garments that they will make -- a breastpiece, and an ephod (ancient sleeveless garment Jewish priests wore), a sleeveless coat, a robe of checkerwork, a turban and a sash -- and they must make the holy garments for Aaron your brother and his sons, that he may act as priests to me. And they themselves will take the gold and the blue thread and the wool dyed reddish purple and coccus scarlet material and the fine linen. "And they must make the ephod of gold, blue thread and wool dyed reddish purple, coccus scarlet material and fine twisted linen, the work of embroiderer. And it is to have 2 shoulder pieces to be joined together at its 2 extremities, and it must be joined. And the girdle, which is upon it for tying it close, according to its workmanship should be of its materials, of gold, blue thread and wool dyed reddish purple and coccus scarlet material (natural crimson dye) and fine twisted linen. "And you must take 2 onyx stones and engrave upon them the names of the sons of Israel, 6 of their names upon the one stone, and the names of the 6 remaining ones upon the other stone in the order of their births. With the work of a craftsman in stones, with the engravings of a seal, you are to engrave the 2 stones with the names of sons of Israel. Set in settings of gold is how you make them. And you must put the 2 stones upon the shoulder pieces of the ephod as memorial stones of the sons of Israel -- and Aaron must carry their names before God upon his 2 shoulders as a memorial. And you must make settings of gold, and 2 chains of pure gold. As cords, you will make them, with the workmanship of a rope -- and you must attach the ropelike chains to the settings. "And you must make the breastpiece of judgment with the workmanship of an embroiderer. Like the workmanship of the ephod you will make it. Of gold, blue thread and wool dyed reddish purple and coccus scarlet material and fine twisted linen you will make it. It should be 4square when doubled, a span of the hand being its length and a span of the hand its
width. And you must fill it with a filling of stones, there being 4 rows of stones. A row of ruby, topaz and emerald is the 1st row. And the 2nd row is turquoise, sapphire and jasper. And the 3rd row is leshem (Hebrew--precious gem) stone, agate and amethyst. And the 4th row is chrysolite (gemstone) and onyx and jade. Sockets of gold should be their fillings. And the stones should be according to the names of the sons of Israel, the 12 according to their names. With the engravings of a seal they should be, each one according to its name, for the 12 tribes. "And you must make upon the breastpiece wreathed chains, in ropework, of pure gold. And you must make upon the breastpiece 2 rings of gold, and you must put the 2 rings upon the 2 extremities of the breastpiece. And you must put the 2 ropes of gold through the 2 rings at the extremities of the breastpiece. And you will put the 2 ends of the 2 ropes through the 2 settings, and you must put them upon the shoulder pieces of the ephod, at the forefront of it. And you must make 2 rings of gold and set them at the 2 extremities of the breastpiece upon its edge that is on the side toward the ephod inward. And you must make 2 rings of gold and put them upon the 2 shoulder pieces of the ephod from below, on its forefront, near its place of joining, above the girdle of the ephod. And they will bind the breastpiece by its rings to the rings of the ephod with a blue string, that it may continue above the girdle of the ephod and the breastpiece may not get displaced from on top of the ephod. And Aaron must carry the names of the sons of Israel on the breastpiece of judgment over his heart when he comes into the Holy as a memorial before God constantly. And you must put the Urim and the Thummim into the breastpiece of judgment, and they must prove to be over Aaron's heart when he comes in before God -- and Aaron must carry the judgments of the sons of Israel over his heart before Jehovah constantly. "And you must make the sleeveless coat of the ephod completely of blue thread (fabric). And there must be an opening at its top in the middle of it. Its opening should have a border round about, the product of a loom (textile) worker. Like the opening of a coat of mail it should be for it, that it may not be torn. And you must make upon the hem of it pomegranates of blue thread and wool dyed reddish purple and coccus scarlet material, upon its hem round about, and bells of gold in between them round about -- a bell of gold and a pomegranate, a bell of gold and a pomegranate upon the hem of the sleeveless coat round about. And it must be upon Aaron that he may minister, and the sound from him must be heard when he goes into the sanctuary before God and when he comes out, that he may not die. "And you must make a shining plate of pure gold and engrave upon it with the engravings of a seal, 'Holiness belongs to God.' And you must fasten it with a blue string, and it must come to be upon the turban. On the forefront of the turban it should be. And it must come to be upon Aaron's forehead, and Aaron must answer for the error committed against the holy objects, which sons of Israel will sanctify, that is to say, all their
holy gifts -- and it must stay upon his forehead constantly, to gain approval for them before God. "And you must weave in checkerwork, the robe of fine linen and you will make a sash, the work of a weaver. "And for Aaron's sons you will make robes, and you must make sashes for them, and you will make headgears for them for glory and beauty. And with them you must clothe Aaron your brother and his sons with him, and you must anoint (bless, ordain) them and fill their hand with power and sanctify them, and they must act as priests to me. And make drawers of linen for them to cover the naked flesh. From the hips to the thighs they are to extend. And they must be upon Aaron and his sons when they come into the tent of meeting or when they go near to the altar to minister in the holy place, that they may not incur error and certainly die. It is a statute (law, rule) to time indefinite for him and his offspring after him. 29 "And this is the thing that you are to do to them to sanctify them for acting as priests to me -- Take a young bull and 2 rams, sound ones, and unfermented bread and unfermented ring-shaped cakes moistened with oil and unfermented wafers smeared with oil. Out of fine wheat flour you will make them. And you them upon a basket and present them in the basket and present them in the basket, and also the bull and the 2 rams. "And you will present Aaron and his sons at the entrance of the tent meeting, and you must wash them with water. Then you must take the garments and clothe Aaron with the robe and the sleeveless coat of ephod and with the ephod and the breastpiece, and you must tie it closely to him with the girdle of the ephod. And you must set the turban upon his head and put the holy sign of dedication upon the turban. And you must take the anointing oil and pour it upon his head and anoint (sanctify, purify, bless) him. "Then you will bring his sons near and you must clothe them with the robes. And you must gird them with the sashes, Aaron as well as his sons and you must wrap the headgear upon them-- and the priesthood must become theirs as a statute (regulation, law, rule) to time indefinite. So you must fill the hand of his hand of his sons with power. "You must now present the bull before the tent of meeting, and Aaron and his sons must lay their hands upon the bull's head. And you must slaughter the bull's blood and put it with your finger upon the horns of the altar, and all the rest of the blood you will pour out at the base of altar. And you must take all the fat that covers the intestines, and the appendage upon the liver, and the 2 kidneys, and the fat that is upon them, and you must make them smoke upon the altar. But the bull's flesh and its skin and its dung you will burn with fire outside the camp. It is a sin offering (it is purification offering at the altar for sin, worshipping asking God). "Then you will take the one ram and Aaron and his sons must lay their hands upon the ram's head. And you must slaughter the ram and take its blood and sprinkle it round about upon the altar. And you will cut up the ram into its pieces, and you must wash its intestines and its shanks and put
its pieces to one another and up to its head. And you must make the entire ram smoke upon the altar. It is a burnt offering to Jehovah, a restful odor. It is an offering made by fire to Jehovah. "Next, you must take the other ram, and Aaron and his sons must lay their hands upon the the ram's head. And you must slaughter the ram and take some of its blood and put it upon the lobe of his sons right ear and upon the thumb of their right hand and the big toe of their right foot, and you must sprinkle the blood round about upon the altar. And you must take some of the blood that is upon the altar and some of the anointing oil, and you must spatter it upon Aaron and his garments and upon his sons with him, that he and his garments and his sons garments and the garments of his sons with him may indeed be holy. "And you must take from the ram the fat and the fat tail and the fat that covers the intestines, and the appendage of the liver, and the 2 kidneys and the fat that is upon them, and the right leg, for it is a ram of installation (ordination--put in order, position of religious authority), also round loaf of bread and ring shaped cake of oiled bread and a wafer out of the basket of unfermented cakes that is before God. And you must place them all upon the palms of Aaron and upon the palms of his sons, and you must wave them to and fro as a wave offering before God. And you must take them off their hands and make them smoke upon the altar upon the burnt offering as a restful odor before God. It is an offering made by fire to God. "And you must take the breast of the ram of installation, which is for Aaron, and wave it to and fro as a wave offering before God, and it must become your portion. And you must sanctify the breast of the wave offering and the leg of the sacred portion that was waved and that was contributed from the ram of installation, from what was for Aaron and from what was for his sons. And it must become Aaron's and his sons' by a regulation to time indefinite to be performed by the sons of Israel, because it is a sacred portion -- and it will become a sacred portion to be rendered by the sons of Israel. From their communion sacrifices it is their sacred portion for God. "And the holy garments that are Aaron's will serve for his sons after him to anoint them in them and to fill their hand with power in them. 7 days the priest who succeeds him from among his sons and who comes into the tent of meeting to minister in the holy place will wear them. "And you will take the ram of installation, and you must boil its flesh in a holy place. And Aaron and his sons must eat the flesh of the ram and the bread that is in the basket at the entrance of the tent meeting. And they must eat the things with which atonement (amends, restitution, restoration for wrong doing) has been made to fill their hand with power, in order to sanctify them. But a stranger may not eat them, because they are something holy. And if any of the flesh of the installation sacrifice and of the bread should be left over until the morning, then you must burn what is left over with fire. It must not be eaten, because it is something holy. "And you must do this way to Aaron and his sons according to all that I have commanded you. You will take 7 days
to fill their hands with power. And you will offer the bull of the sin offering daily for an atonement, and you must purify the altar from sin by your making atonement over it, and you must anoint it to sanctify it. You will take 7 days to make atonement over the altar, and you must sanctify it that it may indeed become most holy altar. Anyone who touches the altar is to be holy. "And this is what you will offer upon the altar -- young rams each 1 year old, 2 a day constantly. And you will offer the young ram in the morning, and you will offer the other young ram between the 2 evenings. And a 10th part of an ephah (1/10 ephah is 2.2 liters) of fine flour moistened with 4th of a hin (Hin=3.67 liters. 4th of hin is 1/4 hin = 0.92 liter = 3.83 cups) of beaten oil, and a drink offering of the 4th of a hin of wine, will go for the 1st young ram. And you will offer the 2nd young ram between the 2 evenings. With a grain offering like that of the morning and with a drink offering like its, you will render it as a restful (pleasant) odor, an offering made by fire to God. It is a constant burnt offering throughout your generations at the entrance of the tent of meeting before God, where I shall present myself to you people to speak to there. "And I will present myself there to the sons of Israel, and it will certainly be sanctified by my glory. And I will sanctify the tent of meeting and the altar -- and I shall sanctify Aaron and his sons for them to act as priests to me. And I will tabernacle in the midst of the sons of Israel, and I will prove to be their God. And they will certainly know that I am God their Lord, who brought them out of Egypt that I may tabernacle in the midst of them. I am God their Lord. 30 "And you must make an altar as a place for burning incense out of acacia wood you will make it. A cubit (approx. 18 inches) in length and width, it should be 4square, and its height 2 cubits (36 inches or 3 feet), its horns extend out of it. And you must overlay it with pure gold, its top surface and its sides round about and its horns -- and you must make a border of gold round about for it. You will also make for it 2 rings of gold. Down below its border upon 2 of its sides you will make them, upon 2 opposite sides of it, as they must serve as supports for the poles with which to carry it. And you must make the poles of acacia wood and overlay them with gold. And you must put it before the curtain that is near the ark of the testimony, before the cover that is over the Testimony, where I shall present myself to you. "And Aaron must make perfumed incense smoke upon it. Morning by morning, when he dresses the lamps, he will make it smoke. And when Aaron lights up the lamps between the 2 evenings, he will make it smoke, it is an incense constantly before God during your generations. You must not offer upon it illegitimate incense or a burnt offering or a grain offering, and you must not pour a drink offering upon it. And Aaron must make atonement upon its horns once a year. With some of the blood of the sin offering of the atonement he will make atonement for it once a year during your generations. It is most holy to God." And God went to speak to Moses, saying, "Whenever you take the sum of the sons of Israel as a census of them, then they must each give a ransom for his soul to the Lord when taking a census of
them, that there may be no plague (sickness) upon them when taking a census of them. This is what all those will give who pass over to those numbered-- a 1/2 shekel by the shekel ("dollar") of the holy place. 20 gerahs (is 1 "dollar". 1 gerah =5 "cents") equal a shekel. A 1/2 shekel is the contribution to God. Everyone passing over to those registered from 20 years old and upward will give God's contribution. The rich should not give more, and the lowly (poor) must not give less than the 1/2 shekel, in order to give God's contribution so as to make atonement for your souls. And you must take the silver money of the atonement from the sons of Israel and give it in behalf of the service of the tent meeting, that it may indeed serve as a memorial before God for the sons of Israel, to make atonement for your souls." And God spoke further to Moses, saying, "You must make a basin of copper and its stand of copper for washing, and put it between the tent of meeting and the altar and put water in it. And Aaron and his sons must wash their hands and feet in it. When they go into the tent of meeting they will wash with water that they may not die, or when they go near the altar to minister in order to make an offering made by fire smoke to God. And they must wash their hands and feet that they may not die, and it must serve as a regulation to time indefinite for them, for him and his offspring throughout their generations." And God continued to speak to Moses, saying, -- "As for you, take to yourself the choicest perfumes -- myrrh (gum resin) in congealed (semisolid) drops 500 units, and sweet cinnamon in 1/2 that amount, 250 units, and sweet calamus 250 units, cassia 500 units by the shekel of the holy place, and olive oil a hin (3.67 liter). Then you must make out of it a holy anointing oil, an ointment, a mixture that is the work of an ointment maker. It is to be a holy anointing oil. "And you must anoint with it the tent of meeting and the ark of the testimony, and the table and all its utensils and the lampstand and its utensil and the altar of incense, and the altar of burnt offering and all its utensils and the basin and its stand. And you must sanctify them that they may indeed become most holy. Anyone touching them is to be holy. And you will anoint Aaron and his sons, and you must sanctify them for acting as priests to me. "And you will speak to the sons of Israel, saying, "This is to continue as a holy anointing oil to me during your generations. It is not to be rubbed in the flesh of mankind, and with its composition you must not make any like it. It is something holy. It is to continue as something holy for you. Anyone who makes an ointment like it and who puts some of it upon a stranger must be cut off from his people.'" And God went on to say to Moses -- "Take to yourself perfumes -- stacte drops and onycha and perfumed galbanum and pure frankincense (aromatic resin). There should be the same portion of each. And you must make into incense, a spice mixture, the work of an ointment maker, salted, pure, something holy. And you must pound some of it into fine powder and put some of it before the Testimony (formal statement, evidence) in the tent of meeting, where I shall present myself to you. It
should be most holy to you people. And the incense that you will make with this composition, you must not make for yourselves. For you it is to continue as something holy to God. Whoever makes any like it to enjoy its smell must be cut off from his people." 31 And God continued to speak to Moses, saying -- "See, I do call by name Bezalel, the son of Uri the son of Hur of the tribe of Judah." And I shall fill him with the spirit of God in wisdom and in understanding and in knowledge and in every kind of craftmanship, for designing devices, for working in gold and silver and copper, and in working of stones to set them and in working of wood to make products of every kind. As for me, look! I do put with him Oholiab the son of Ahisamach of the tribe of Dan, and in the heart of everyone wise of heart I do put wisdom, that they may indeed make everything I have commanded you -- the tent of meeting and the Ark for the testimony and the cover that is upon it, and all the utensils of the tent, and the table and its utensils, and the lampstand of pure gold and all its utensils, and the altar of incense, and the altar of burnt offering and all its utensils, and the basin and its stand, and the garments of knitted work and the holy garments for Aaron on the priest and the garments of his sons for acting as priests -- and the anointing oil and the perfumed incense for the sanctuary. According to everything I have commanded you they will do." And God said further to Moses -- "As for you, speak to sons of Israel, saying, 'especially my sabbaths you are to keep, for it is a sign between me and you during your generations that you may know that I God am sanctifying you. And you must keep the sabbath, for it is something holy to you. A profaner (non-religious, secular) of it will positively be put to death. In case there is anyone doing work on it, then that soul must be cut off from the midst of his people. 6 days the work be done, but on the 7th day is a sabbath of complete rest. It is something holy to God. Anyone doing work on the sabbath day will positively be put to death. And the sons of Israel must keep the sabbath so as to carry out the sabbath during their generations. It is a covenant to time indefinite. Between me and the sons of Israel it is a sign to time indefinite, because in 6 days God made the heavens and the earth on the 7th day he rested and refresh himself.'" Now as soon as he had finished speaking with him on Mount Sinai he proceeded to give Moses 2 tablets of the Testimony, tablets of stone written on by God's finger. 32 Meanwhile the people got to see that Moses was taking a long time about coming down from the mountain. So the people congregated themselves about Aaron and said to him -- "Get up, make for us a god who will go ahead of us, because as regards this Moses, the man who led us up out of the land of Egypt, we certainly do not know what has happened to him." At this Aaron said to them -- "Tear off the gold earrings that are in the ears of your wives, of your sons and of your daughters and bring them to me." And all the people took off the gold earrings that were in their ears and bring them to
Aaron. Then he took the gold from their hands, and he formed it with a graving tool and proceeded to make it into a molten statue of a calf. And they began to say -- "This is your God, O Israel, who led you up out of land of Egypt." When Aaron got to see this, he went to building an altar before it. Finally Aaron called out and said -- "There is a festival to God tomorrow." So on the next day they were early in rising, and they began offering up burnt offerings and presenting communion sacrifices. After that people sat down to eat and drink. Then they got up to have a good time. God now said to Moses -- "Go, descend, because your people whom you led up out of the land of Egypt have acted ruinously. They have turned aside in a hurry from the way I have commanded them to go. They have made a molten statue of a calf for themselves and keep bowing down to it and sacrificing to it and saying -- "This is your God, O Israel, who led you up out of land of Egypt.'" And God went on to say to Moses -- "I have looked at this people and here it is a stiff-necked (proud, unwilling to do what other people want) people. So now let me be, that my anger may blaze against them and I may exterminate them, and let me make you into a great nation." And Moses proceeded to soften the face of Lord his God and to say -- "Why, O God, should your anger blaze against your people whom you brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a strong hand? Why should the Egyptians say, 'With evil intent he brought them out in order to kill them among the mountains and to exterminate them from the surface of the ground'? Turn away from your burning anger and feel regret over the evil against your people. Remember Abraham, Isaac and Israel your servants, to whom you swore by yourself, in that you said to them, ''I shall multiply your seed like the stars of the heavens, and all this land that I have designated I shall give to your seed that they may indeed take possession of it time indefinite.'" And God began to feel regret over the evil that he had spoken of doing to his people. After that Moses turned and went down from the mountain with the 2 tablets of the Testimony in his hand, tablets written on their both sides. On this and on that side they were written upon. And the tablets were the workmanship of God, and the writing was the writing of God engraved upon the tablets. And Joshua began to hear the noise of the people because of their shouting, and he proceeded to say to said to Moses -- "There is a noise of battle in the camp." But he said -- "It is not the sound of the singing over mighty performance, And it is not the sound of the singing of defeat -- It is the sound of other singing that I am hearing." So it came about as soon as he got near the camp and could see the calf and the dances, Moses' anger began to blaze, and he at once threw the tablets from his hands and shattered them at the foot of the mountain. Then he took the calf that they had made and he burnt it with fire and crushed it till it was fine, after which he scattered it upon the surface of the waters and made the sons of Israel drink it. After that
Moses said to Aaron -- "What did this people do to you that you have brought a great sin upon it?" To this Aaron said -- "Do not let the anger of my lord blaze. You yourself well know the people, that they are evil-inclined. So they said to me, 'Make for us a god who will go ahead of us, because regards this Moses, the man who led us up out of the land of Egypt, we certainly do not know what has happened to him." Hence I said to them, 'Who have any gold? They must tear it off themselves that they may give it to me. And I proceeded to throw it into fire and this calf came on out." And Moses got to see that the people went unrestrained, because Aaron had let them go unrestrained for a disgrace among their opposers. Then Moses took his stand in the gate of the camp and said -- "Who is on God's side? To me!" And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves to him. He now he said to them -- "This is what God the Lord of Israel has said, 'Put each one of you his sword on his side. Pass through and return from gate to gate in the camp and kill each one his brother and each one his fellow and each one his intimate acquaintance." And the sons Levi proceeded to do as Moses had said. so that there fell of the people on that day about 300 men. And Moses went on to say -- "Fill your hand today with power for God, because each one of you is against his own son and his own brother, and that he may confer a blessing upon you today." And it came about on the very next day that Moses proceeded to say to the people -- "You--you have sinned with a great sin, and now I shall go up to God. Perhaps I can make amends for your sin." So Moses returned to God and said -- "Ah, but this people has sinned with a great sin, in that they made a god for themselves! But now if you will pardon their sin, -- and if not, wipe me out, please, from your book that you have written." However, God said to Moses -- "Whoever has sinned against me, I shall wipe him out of my book. And now, come, lead the people to where I have spoken to you of. Look! My angel will go ahead of you, and on the day of my bringing punishment I shall certainly bring punishment upon them for their sin." And God began plaguing (sickness, disease) the people because they had made the calf, which Aaron had made. 33 And God said further to Moses, "Go, move up from here, you and the people whom you led out of the land of Egypt, to the land about which I swore to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, saying -- 'To your seed I shall give it.' And I will send an angel ahead of you and drive out the Canaanites, Amorites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Hivites and the Jebusites, to a land flowing with milk and honey, for I shall not go up in the midst of you, because you are a stiff-necked (stubborn) people, that I may not exterminate you on the way." When people got hear this evil word, they began to mourn -- and none of them put his ornaments on himself. And God went on to say to Moses -- "Say to sons of Israel, 'You are a stiff-necked people. In one minute I could go up into the midst of you and certainly exterminate (kill) you. So now put down your ornaments off yourself, as I want to know what I am going to do to you.'" And the sons of Israel
went stripping their ornaments off themselves from Mount Horeb onward. As for Moses, he proceeded to take his tent away and pitched it outside the camp, far away from the camp -- and he called it a tent of meeting. And it occurred that everyone inquiring of God would go out to the tent of meeting, which was outside of camp. And it occurred that as soon as Moses went out of the tent, all the people would rise, and they stationed themselves each one at the entrance of his own tent, and they gazed after Moses until he went into the tent. It also occurred as soon as Moses had gone into the tent, the pillar of cloud would come down, and it stood at the entrance of the tent and he spoke with Moses. And all the people saw the pillar of cloud standing at the entrance of the tent, and all the people rose and bowed down each one at the entrance of his own tent. And God spoke to Moses face to face, just as a man would speak to his fellow. When he returned to the camp, his minister Joshua, the son of Nun, as attendant, would not withdraw from the midst of the tent. Now Moses said to God -- "See you are saying to me -- 'Lead this people up' but you yourself have not let me know whom you will send with me. Moreover, you yourself have said-- 'I do know you by name and, besides, you have found favor in my eyes.' And now, if please, I found favor in your eyes, make me know please, your ways, that I may know you, in order that I may find favor in your eyes. And consider this nation is your people." So he said, "My own person will go along and I shall certainly give you rest." At this he said to him -- "if your own person is not going along, do not lead us up from here. And by what, now, will it be known that I have found favor in your eyes, I and your people? Is it not by your going along with us, in that I and your people have been made disctint from all the other people who are upon the surface of ground?" And God went on to say to Moses -- "This thing, too, of which you have spoken, I will do, because you have found favor in my eyes and I know you by name." At this he said, "Cause me to see, please, your glory." But he said, "I myself shall cause all my goodness to pass before your face, and I will declare the name of Jehovah before you -- and I will favor the one whom I may favor, and I will show mercy to the one to whom I will show mercy." And he added-- "You are not able to see my face because no man may see me and yet live." And God said further, "Here is a place with me, and you must station yourself upon the rock. And it has to occur while my glory is passing by I must place you in a hole in the rock, and I must put my palm over you as a screen until I have passed by. After that I must take my palm away, and you will indeed see my back. But my face may not be seen." 34 Then God said to Moses -- "Carve out for yourself 2 tablets of stone like the 1st ones, and I must write upon the tablets the words that appeared on the 1st tablets which you shattered. And get ready for the morning, as you must go up in the morning into Mount Sinai and station yourself by me there on the top of the mountain. But nobody may go up with you and, too, let nobody else be
seen in all the mountain. What is more, no flock or herd should be pasturing in front of that mountain." Accordingly Moses carved out 2 tablets of stone like the 1st ones, and got up early in the morning and went up into Mount Sinai, just as God had ordered him, and he was taking the 2 tablets of stone in his hand. And God proceeded to come down in the cloud and station himself with him there and declare the name of Jehovah. And God went passing by before his face declaring -- "Jehovah, Jehovah, a God merciful, gracious, slow to anger and abundant in loving-kindness and truth, preserving loving-kindness for 1000s, pardoning error and transgression (wrong) and sin, but by no means will he make exemption from punishment, bringing punishment for the error of fathers upon sons, upon the grandsons and upon the 3rd generation and upon the 4th generations." Moses at once hurried to bow low to the earth and prostrate (lay down with the face on the ground with arms stretched out) himself. Then he said -- "if, now, I have found favor in your eyes, O God, please, let God go along in the midst of us, because it is a stiff -necked people, and you have to forgive our error and our sin, and you must take us as your possession. In turn HE said -- "Here I am concluding a covenant -- Before all your people I shall do wonderful things that have never been created in all the earth or among all the nations -- and all the people in the midst of whom you are will indeed see the work of God, because it is fear inspiring thing that I am doing with you. "For your part keep what I am commanding you today. Here I am driving out from before you the Amorites and the Canaanites and the Hittites and the Perizzites and the Hivites and the Jebusites. Watch yourself that you do not conclude a covenant with the inhabitants of the land to which you are going, for fear it may prove itself a snare in your midst. But their altars you people are to pull down, and their sacred pillars you are to shatter, and their sacred poles you are to cut down. For you must not prostrate yourself to another god, because God Jehovah whose name is Jealous, he is a jealous God -- For fear that you may conclude a covemant with the inhabitants of the land, as they will certainly have immoral interc*urse with their gods and sacrifice to their gods, and someone will be certain to invite you -- and you will certainly eat some of his sacrifice. Then you will have to take some of their daughters for your sons, and their daughters will be certain to have immoral interc*urse with their gods and make your sons have immoral interc*urse with their gods. "You must not make molten idol gods for yourself. The festival of unfermented cakes you to keep. You will eat unfermented cakes just as I have commanded you, 7 days at the appointed time in the month of Abib (1st month of ancient Jewish calendar --April) because it was in the month of Abib that you came out of Egypt. "Everything that was 1st opens the womb (birthed, 1st born) is mine, and, as regards all your livestock, the male 1stling of bull and of sheep. And the 1sling of an ass you are to redeem with a sheep. But if you will not redeem
it, then you must break its neck. Every 1stborn of your sons you are to redeem (save). And they must not appear before me empty handed. "6 days you are to labor, but on the 7th day you will keep sabbath. In plowing time and in harvest you will keep sabbath. "And you will carry on your festival of weeks with the 1st ripe fruits of the wheat harvest, and the festival of ingathering at the turn (end) of the year. "3 times in the year every male of yours is to appear before true Lord, God, the God of Israel. For I shall drive the nations away from before you, and I will make your territory spacious -- and nobody will desire your land while you are going up to see the face of Jehovah your Lord 3 times in the year. "You must not slaughter along what is leavened the blood of my sacrifice. And the sacrifice of the festival of the passover should not stay overnight until the morning. "The best of the 1st ripe fruits of the soil you are to bring to the house of God your Lord. "You must not boil a kid in its mother's milk." And God went on to say to Moses -- "Write down for yourself these words, because it is an accordance with these words that I do conclude a covenant with you and Israel." And he continued there with God 40 days and 40 nights. He ate no bread and drank no water. And he (Moses) proceeded to write upon the tablets the words of the covenant, the Ten Words (10 Commandments). Now it came about when Moses came down from Mount Sinai that the 2 tablets of the Testimony were in the hand of Moses when he came down from the mountain, and Moses did not know that the skin of his face emitted rays because of his having spoken with him (God). When Aaron and all the sons of Israel got to see Moses, why, look! the skin of his face emitted (gave) out rays and they grew afraid of coming near him. Moses proceeded to call them, So Aaron and all the chieftains among the assembly came back to him, and Moses began to speak to them. 1st after that all the sons Israel came near to him, and he began commanding them all that God had spoken with him on Mount Sinai. When Moses would finish speaking with them, he would put a veil over his face. But when Moses would go in before God to speak with him, he would take away the veil until his going out. And he went out and spoke to the sons of Israel what he would be commanded. And the sons of Israel saw Moses' face, that the skin of Moses' face emitted rays -- and Moses put the veil back over his face until he went in to speak with him. 35 Later Moses called the entire assembly of the sons of Israel together and said to them -- "These are the words that God has commanded, to do them -- 6 days may work be done, but on the 7th day it will become something holy to you, a sabbath of complete rest to God. Anybody doing work on it will be put to death. You must not light a fire in any of your dwelling places on the sabbath day." And Moses went on to say to the entire assembly of the sons of Israel -- "This is the word that God has commanded, saying, 'From among yourselves take
up a contribution for God. Let every willing-hearted one bring it as God's contribution, namely, gold and silver and copper and blue thread and wool dyed reddish purple and coccus scarlet material and fine linen and goat's hair and ram skins dyed red and sealskins and acacia wood and oil for the luminary and balsam oil for the anointing oil and for the perfumed incense and onyx stones and setting stones for the ephod and for the breastpiece. "'And let all the wise- hearted ones among you come and make all that God has commanded, namely, the tabernacle with its tent and its covering, its hooks and its panel frames, its bars, its pillars and its socket pedestals, the Ark and its poles, the cover and the curtain of the screen -- the table and its poles, and all its utensils and the show-bread -- the lampstand of illumination and its utensils and its lamps and the oil for illumination (light) -- and the altar of incense and its poles -- and the anointing oil and the perfumed incense -- and the screen of the entrance for the tabernacle's entrance -- the altar of burnt offering and the copper grating that is for it, its poles and all its utensils -- the basin and its stand -- the hangings of the courtyard, its pillars and its socket pedestals and the screen of the gate of the courtyard -- the tent pins of the tabernacle and the tent pins of the courtyard and their cords, the garments of knitted work for ministering in the sanctuary, the holy garments for Aaron the priest and garments of his sons for acting as priests.'" Accordingly all the assembly of the sons of Israel went out from before Moses. Then they came, everyone whose heart impelled (enslaved, obligated) him, and they brought, everyone whose spirit incited (encourage) him, God's contribution for the work of the tent of meeting and for all its service and for the holy garments. They kept coming, the men along with the women, every willing-hearted one. They brought brooches and earrings, and rings and female ornaments, all sorts of articles of gold, that is, everyone who presented the wave offering of gold to God. And all those with whom there were found blue thread and wool dyed reddish purple and coccus scarlet material and fine linen and goat's hair and ram skins dyed red and sealskins brought them. All those contributing the contribution of silver and copper brought God's contribution, and all those with whom there was found acacia wood for all the work of the service brought it. And all the women who were wise of heart spun with their hands, and they kept bringing as yarn the blue thread and wool dyed reddish purple, the coccus scarlet material and fine linen. And all the women whose hearts impelled them with wisdom spun the goat's hair. And the chieftains brought onyx stones and setting stones for ephod and the breastpiece. and the balsam oil and oil for illumination and for the anointing oil and for the perfumed incense. Every man and woman whose heart incited them to bring something for all the work that God had commanded to make by means of Moses did so -- the sons of Israel bought a voluntary offering to God. Then Moses said to the sons of Israel -- "See God has
called by name Bezalel the son of Uri the son of Hur of the tribe of Judah. And he proceeded to fill him with the spirit of God in wisdom, in understanding, and in knowledge and in every sort of craftsmanship and for designing devices, for working in gold and silver and copper, and in working of stones to set them and in working of wood to make ingenious products of every sort. And he has put it into his heart that he should teach, he and Oholiab the son of Ahisamach of the tribe of Dan. He has filled them with wisdom of heart to do all the work of a craftsman and an embroiderer and of a weaver in blue thread and wool dyed reddish purple, in coccus scarlet material and fine linen, and of a textile worker, men doing every sort of work and designing devices. 36 "And Bezalel must work, also Oholiab and every wise-hearted man to whom God has given wisdom and understanding in these things in order to know how to do all the work of the holy service according to all that God has commanded." And Moses proceeded to call Bezalel and Oholiab and every wise- hearted man into whose heart God had put wisdom, everyone whose heart impelled him to approach the work in order to do it. Then they took from before Moses all the contribution that the sons of Israel had brought for the work of the holy service so as to do it, and as for the latter, they still brought to him a voluntary offering morning after morning. And all the wise ones who were doing all the holy work began to come, one man after another, from their work that they were doing, and to say to Moses -- "The people are bringing much more than what the service needs for the work that God has commanded to be done." So Moses commanded that they should cause an announcement to pass through the camp, saying -- "Men and women, do not produce any more stuff for the holy contribution." With that the people were restrained from bringing it in. And the stuff proved to be enough for all the work to be done, and more than enough. And all the wise-hearted among those doing the work went making the tabernacle, the 10 tent cloths of fine twisted linen and blue thread and wool dyed reddish purple and coccus scarlet material -- with cherubs, the work of an embroiderer, he made them. The length of each tent cloth was 28 cubits (approx. 42 feet), and the width of each tent cloth 4 cubits (6 feet). There was 1 measure for all the tent cloths. Then he joined 5 tent cloths one to another, and the 5 other tent clothes he joined one to another. After that he made loops of blue thread upon the edge of the one tent cloth at the junction (connection) end. He did the same on the edge of the outermost tent cloth at the other place of junction. He made 50 loops on the one tent cloth, and he made 50 loops on the one tent cloth, and he made 50 loops on the extremity of the tent cloth that was at the other place of junction, the loops being opposite one another. Finally he made 50 hooks of gold and joined the tent cloths to one another by the hooks, so that it became one tabernacle. And he went on to make tent cloths of goat's hair for the tent upon the tabernacle. 11 tent cloths were what he made. The length of each tent cloth was 30 cubits (45 feet), and the width of each tent cloth 4 cubits (6 feet).
There was 1 measure for the 11 tent cloths. Then he joined 5 tent cloths together by themselves and the 6 other tent cloths by themselves. Next he made 50 loops upon the edge of the outermost tent cloth at the place of junction, and he made 50 loops upon the edge of the other tent cloth that joined with it. After that he made 50 hooks of copper for joining the tent together to become one piece. And he proceeded to make a covering for the tent out of ram skins dyed red and a covering out of sealskins up on top. Then be made the panel frames for the tabernacle out of acacia wood, standing on end. 10 cubits was the length (15 feet) of panel frame, and 1 1/2 cubit (2 1/4 feet) width of each panel frame. Each panel frame had 2 tenons (joints) fitted one the other. That is the way he did to all the panel frames of the tabernacle. So he made the panel frames for the tabernacle, 20 panel frames for the side toward the Negeb, to the south. And he made 40 socket pedestals of silver for beneath the 20 panel frames, 2 socket pedestals beneath the one panel frame with its 2 tenons, and 2 socket pedestals beneath the other panel frame with its 2 tenons. And for the other side of tabernacle, the northern side, he made 20 panel frames, and their 40 socket pedestals of silver, 2 socket pedestals beneath the one panel frame and 2 socket pedestals beneath the other panel frame. And for the rear section to the tabernacle to the west he made 6 panel frames. And he made 2 panel frames as corner posts of the tabernacle on its 2 rear sections. And they proved be duplicates at the bottom and together they came to be twins to the top of each one at the 1st ring. That is what he did to them both, to the 2 corner posts. So they amounted to 8 panel frames and their socket pedestals of silver to 16, 2 socket pedestals next to 2 socket pedestals beneath each panel frame. And he went on to make bars of acacia wood, 5 for the panel frames of the one side of the tabernacle and 5 bars for the panel frames of the other side of the tabernacle and 5 bars for the panel frames of the tabernacle for the 2 rear sections to the west. Then he made the middle bar to run through at the middle of the panel frames from one end to the other. And he overlaid the panel frames with gold, and he made their rings gold as supports for the bars, and he went on to overlay the bars with gold. And he proceeded to make a curtain of blue thread and wool dyed reddish purple and coccus scarlet material and fine twisted linen. With the work of an embroiderer he make it with cherubs. Then he made for it 4 acacia pillars and overlaid them with gold, their pegs being of gold, and cast 4 socket pedestals of silver for them. And he went on to make a screen for the entrance of the tent out of blue thread and wool dyed reddish purple and coccus scarlet material and fine twisted linen, the work of a weaver, and its 5 pillars and their pegs. And he overlaid their tops and their joints with gold, but their 5 socket pedestals were of copper. 37 Bezalel now made the Ark of acacia wood. 2 cubits and a half was its length (3' 9") and a cubit and a half its width (2' 3"),
and a cubit and a half its height (2' 3"). Then he overlaid it with pure gold inside and outside and made a border of gold round bout for it. After that he cast 4 rings of gold for it, for above its 4 feet, with 2 rings on its one side, and 2 rings on its other side. He next made poles of acacia wood and overlaid them with gold. Then he put the poles through the rings on the sides of the Ark for carrying the Ark. And he went on to make the cover of pure gold. 2 1/2 cubits (3' 9") in length, and a cubit and a half (2' 3") its width. He further made 2 cherubs of gold. Of hammered work he made them on both ends of the cover. 1 cherub was on the end over there, and the other cherub on the end over here. He made the cherubs on the cover on both of its ends. And they came to be cherubs spreading out 2 wings upward, screening over the cover with their wings, and their faces were one to the other. The faces of the cherubs proved to be toward the cover. And he proceeded to make the table of acacia wood. 2 cubits (3 feet) was its length, and a cubit (18 inches=1 1/2 feet) width, and a cubit and a half (2' 3") its height. Then he overlaid with pure gold and made a border of gold round about for it. Next, he made for it a rim of a handbreadth round about and a made a border of gold for its rim round about. Further, he cast 4 rings of gold for it and put the rings upon the 4 corners that were for the 4 feet. The rings proved to be near the rim, as supports for the poles for carrying the table. Then he made the poles of acacia wood and overlaid them with gold for carrying the table. Aftrer he made the utensils that are upon the table, its dishes and its cups and its bowls and its pitchers with which libation (offering) would be poured, out of pure gold. Then he made the lampstand of pure gold. Of hammered work he made the lampstand. Its sides and its branches, its cups, its knobs and blossoms proceeded out of it. And 6 branches were running out from its sides, 3 branches of the lampstand out from its one side and 3 branches of the lampstand out from its other side. 3 cups shaped like flowers of almond were on the one set of branches, with knobs and blossoms alternating -- and 3 cups shaped like flowers of almond were on the other set of branches, with knobs and blossoms alternating. That is the way it was for the 6 branches running out from the lampstand. And on the lampstand there were 4 cups shaped like flowers of almond, with its knobs and its blossoms alternating. And the knob under 2 branches was out of it, and the knob under 2 other branches was out of it, and the knob under 2 more branches was out of it, for the 6 branches running out from the lampstand. Their knobs and their branches proceeded out from it. All of it was 1 piece of hammered work, of pure gold. Then he made its 7 lamps and its snuffers, and its fire holders out of pure gold. Of a talent of pure gold he made it and all its utensils. He now made the altar of incense out of acacia wood. A cubit (18 inches) was its length and a cubit (1 1/2') its width, it being a foursquare, and 2 cubits (3 feet) was its height. Its horns proceeded out of it. Then he overlaid it with pure gold, its top surface and its sides.
round about and its horns, and he made a border of gold round about for it. And he made for it 2 rings of gold down below its border upon 2 of its sides, upon 2 opposite sides of it, as support for the poles with which to carry it. After that he made the poles of acacia wood and overlaid them with gold. He made additionally the holy anointing oil and the pure, perfumed incense, the work of anointment maker. 38 And he went on to make the altar of burnt offering out of acacia wood. 5 cubits (approx. 7 1/2 feet) its length and 5 cubits (7 1/2 feet) its width, it being a foursquare, and 3 cubits (4 1/2 feet) its height. Then he made its horns upon its 4 corners. Its horns proceeding out of it. Next he overlaid it with copper. After that he made all the utensils of the altar, the cans and the shovels and the bowls, the forks and the fire holders. All its utensils he made of copper. He further made for the altar a grating, network of copper, under its rim, down toward its center. Then he cast 4 rings on the 4 extremities near the grating of copper, as supports for the poles. After that he made the poles of acacia wood and overlay them with copper. Then he put the poles into the rings on the sides of the altar for carrying it with them. He made it a hollow chest of planks. Then he made the basin of copper and its stand of copper, by the use of mirrors of the women servants who did organized service at the entrance of the tent of meeting. And he proceeded to make the courtyard. For the side toward the Negeb, to the south the hagings of the courtyard were fine twisted linen, for a 100 cubits (approx. 150 feet). Their 20 pillars and their 20 socket pedestals were of copper. The pegs of the pillars and their joints were of silver. Also, for the north side there were a 100 cubits (150 feet). Their 20 pillars and their 20 socket pedestals were of copper. The pegs of the pillars and their joints were of silver. But for the west side the hangings were for 50 cubits (75 feet). Their pillars were 10 and their socket pedestals 10. The pegs of pillars and their joints were of silver. And for the east side toward the sunrising there were 50 cubits (75 feet). The hangings were for 15 cubits (22 1/2 feet) to the one wing, their pillars were 3 and their socket pedestals 3. And for the other wing, on this as well as that side of the gate of the courtyard, the hangings were for 15 cubits (22 1/2 feet). Their pillars were 3 and their socket pedestals 3. All the hangings of the courtyard round about were of fine twisted linen. And the socket pedestals for the pillars were of copper. The pegs of the pillars and their joints were of silver and overlaying of their tops of silver, and there were silver joining for all the pillars of the courtyard. And the screen of the gate of the courtyard was the work of a weaver, of blue thread and wool dyed reddish purple and coccus scarlet material (crimson dye) and fine twisted linen, 20 cubits (30 feet) was the length, and the height throughout its extent was 5 cubits (7 1/2 feet) equally with the hangings of the courtyard. And their 4 pillars and their 4 socket pedestals were of copper. Their pegs were of silver and the overlaying of their heads and their joints were of silver. And all the tent pins for the tabernacle and for the courtyard round about of copper.
The following are the things inventoried of the tabernacle, the tabernacle of the Testimony, which was inventoried at the command of Moses, as the service of the Levites under the guidance of Itharmar the sons of Aaron the priest. And Bezalel the sons of Uri the son of Hur of the tribe of Judah did all that God had commanded Moses. And with him was Oholiab the son of Ahisamach of the tribe of Dan, a craftsman and embroiderer and weaver in the blue thread and wool dyed reddish purple and coccus scarlet material and fine linen. All the gold that was used for the work in all the work of the holy place came to the amount of the gold of the wave offering, 29 talents (2175 pounds) and 730 shekels ("dollars" money) by the shekel of the holy place. And the silver of the ones registered of the assembly was a 100 talents (heaviest Biblical weight 1 talent is 75 lbs.) and 1775 shekels by the shekel of the holy place. The 1/2 shekel for an individual was the 1/2 of a shekel by the shekel of the holy place, for every man who was passing over to those who were registered from 20 years of age and upward, amounting to 603,550. And a 100 talents (7500 pounds) of silver went into the casting of the socket pedestals of the holy place and the socket pedestals of the curtain. A 100 socket pedestals equaled a 100 talents, a talent (75 pounds) to a socket pedestals. And out of the 1775 shekels he made pegs for the pillars and overlaid their tops and joined them together. And the copper of the wave offering was 70 talents (5250 pounds) and 2400 shekels ("dollars" money). And with this he proceeded to make the socket pedestals of the entrance of the tent of meeting and copper grating that belonged to it, and all the utensils of the altar, and the socket pedestals of the courtyard round about, and the socket pedestals of the gate of the courtyard, and all the tent pins of the tabernacle and all the tent pins of the courtyard round about. 39 And out of the blue thread and wool dyed reddish purple and coccus scarlet material they made garments of knitted work for ministering in the holy place. So they made the holy garments for Aaron, just as God had commanded Moses. Accordingly he made the ephod (sleeveless garment Jewish priest wore) of gold, blue thread and wool dyed reddish purple and coccus scarlet material and fine twisted linen. Then they beat plates of gold to thin sheets, and he cut out threads to work in among the blue thread and the wool dyed reddish purple and the coccus scarlet material and the fine linen, as the work of an embroiderer. They made shoulder pieces for it that were joined. It was joined at its 2 extremities. And the girdle, which was upon it for tying it close, was of the same material according to its workmanship, of gold, blue thread, and wool dyed reddish purple and coccus scarlet material and fine twisted linen, just as God had commanded Moses. Then they made the onyx stones set with settings of gold, engraved with the engravings of a seal according to the names of the sons of Israel. So he placed them upon the shoulder pieces of the ephod as memorial stones for the sons of Israel,
just as God had commanded Moses. Then he made the breastpiece with the workmanship of an embroiderer, like the workmanship of the ephod, out of gold, blue thread and wool dyed reddish purple and coccus scarlet material and fine twisted linen. It proved to be foursquare when doubled. They made the breastpiece, when doubled, a span of a hand in its length and a span of a hand in its width. Then they filled it with 4 rows of stones. A row of ruby, topaz and emerald was the 1st row. And the 2nd row was turquoise, sapphire and jasper. And the 3rd row was leshem (precious gem) stone, agate and amethyst. And the 4th row was chrysolite and onyx and jade. They were set with settings of gold in their fillings. And the stones were according to the names of the sons of Israel. They were 12 according to their names, with the engravings of a seal, each according to its name for the 12 tribes And they proceeded to make upon the breastpiece wreathed chains, in ropework, of pure gold. Then they made 2 settings of gold and 2 rings of gold and put the 2 rings upon the 2 extremities of the breastpiece. After that they put the 2 ropes of gold through the 2 rings at the extremities of the breastpiece. And they put 2 ends of the 2 ropes through the 2 settings. Then they put them upon the shoulder pieces of the ephod, at the forefront of it. Next they made 2 rings of gold and set them at the 2 extremities of the breastpiece upon its edge that is on the side toward the ephod inward. Then they made 2 rings of gold and put them upon the 2 shoulder pieces of the ephod from below, on its forefront, near its place of joining, above the girdle of the ephod. Finally they bound the breastpiece by its rings to the rings of the ephod with a blue string, that it might continue above the girdle of the ephod and the breastpiece might not get displaced on top the ephod, just as God had commanded Moses. Then he made sleeveless coat of the ephod, the workmanship of a loom worker, all of blue thread. And the opening of the sleeveless coat was in the middle of it, like the opening of a mail. Its opening had a border round about that it might not be torn. Then they made upon the hem of the sleeveless coat pomegranates of blue thread and wool dyed reddish purple and coccus scarlet material, twisted together. Further, they made bells of pure gold and put the bells in between the pomegranates upon the hem of the sleeveless coat round about, in between the pomegranates -- a bell and a pomegranate upon the hem of the sleeveless coat round about, for ministering, just as God had ordered Moses. Next they made the robes of fine linen, the workmanship of a loom worker, for Aaron and his sons, and the turban of fine linen and the ornamental headgears of fine linen and the linen drawers of fine twisted linen, and the sash of fine twisted linen and blue thread and wool dyed reddish purple and coccus scarlet material, the work of a weaver, just as God had commanded Moses. Finally they made the shining plate, the holy sign of dedication, out of pure gold and inscribed upon it an inscription with the engravings of a seal -- "Holiness belongs to God Jehovah."
Then they put a string of blue thread to it in order to put it upon the turban up above, just as God had ordered Moses. So the work for the tabernacle of the tent of meeting all came to its completion, in that the sons of Israel kept doing according to all that God had commanded Moses. They did just so. And they proceeded to bring tabernacle to Moses, the tent and all its utensils, its hooks, its panel frames, its bars and its pillars and socket pedestals, and its covering of ram skins dyed red and its covering sealskins and the curtain of the screen, and the ark of the testimony and its poles, and the cover, the table, all its utensils and the showbread, the lampstand of pure gold, its lamps, the row of lamps, and all its utensils and the oil of illumination, and the altar of gold and the anointing oil and perfumed incense, the screen for the entrance of the tent, the altar of copper and the grating of copper that belonged to it, its poles and all its utensils, the basin and its stand, the hangings of the courtyard, its pillars and its socket pedestals and the screen for the gate of the courtyard, its tent cords and its tent pins and all the utensils for the service of the tabernacle, for the tent of meeting, the garments of knitted work for ministering in the sanctuary, the holy garments for Aaron the priest and the garments of his sons for acting as priests. According to all that God had commanded Moses, that was the way the sons of Israel did all the service. And Moses got to see all the work, and look! they had done it just as God had commanded. That was the way they had done. Consequently Moses blessed them. 40 Then God spoke to Moses, saying -- "On the day of the 1st month, on the 1st of the month, you are to set up the tabernacle of the tent of meeting. And you must place the ark of the testimony in it and shut off approach to the Ark with the curtain. And you must bring the table in and set its arrangements in order, and you must bring in the lampstand and light up the lamps. And you must put the golden altar for incense before the ark of the testimony and put the screen of the entrance for the tabernacle in place. You must put the altar of burnt offering before the entrance of the tabernacle of the tent of meeting, and you must put the basin between the tent of meeting and the altar and put water in it. And you must place the courtyard round about and put up the screen of the gate of the courtyard. And you must take the anointing oil and anoint (religious ceremony of conferring with Divine--for Holy office by rubbing oil) the tabernacle and all that is in it, and you must sanctify (purify, cleanse, bless) it and all its utensils, so it must become something holy. And you must anoint the altar of burnt offering and all its utensils and sanctify the altar, and so it must become a most holy altar. And you must anoint the basin and its stand sanctify it. "Then you must bring Aaron and his sons near to the entrance of the tent of meeting and wash them with water. And you must clothe Aaron with the holy garments and anoint him and sanctify him, and so he must act as priest to me. After
that you will bring his sons near and you must clothe them with robes. And you must anoint them just as you anointed their father, and so they must act as priest to me, and their anointing must serve continually for them as a priesthood to time indefinite during their generations." And Moses proceeded to do according to all God had commanded him. He did just so. Accordingly it came about that in the 1st month, in the 2nd year, on the 1st day of the month, the tabernacle was set up. When Moses proceeded to set up the tabernacle, he went putting its socket pedestals down and placing its panel frames and putting its bars in and setting up its pillars. Then he spread out the tent over the tabernacle and placed the covering of the tent above upon it, just as God had commanded Moses. After that he took the Testimony and put into the Ark and placed the poles on the Ark and put the cover above the Ark. Then he brought the Ark into the tabernacle and put the curtain of the screen in place and shut off approach to the ark of testimony, just as God had commanded Moses. Next he put the table in the tent of meeting on the side of the tabernacle to the north outside the curtain, and he arranged the row of bread upon it before God, just as God had commanded Moses. Then he placed the lampstand in the tent of meeting in the front of the table, on the side of tabernacle to the south. He then lit up the lamps before God, just as God commanded Moses. He next placed the golden altar in the tent of meeting before the curtain, that he might make perfumed incense smoke upon it, just as God had commanded Moses. Finally he put the screen of the entrance of the tabernacle to place. And he placed the altar of burnt offering at the entrance of the tabernacle of the tent of meeting, that he might offer up the burnt offering and the grain offering upon it, just as God commanded Moses. Then he placed the basin between the tent of meeting and the altar and put water in it for washing. And Moses and Aaron and his sons washed their hands and their feet at it. When they went into the tent of meeting and when they went near to the altar they would wash, just as God had commanded Moses. Finally he set up the courtyard round about the tabernacle and the altar and put up the screen of the gate of the courtyard. So Moses finished the work. And the cloud began to cover the tent of meeting, and God's glory filled the tabernacle. And Moses was not able to go to the tent of meeting, because the cloud resided over it and God's glory filled the tabernacle. And when the cloud lifted itself up from over the tabernacle the sons of Israel would break camp during all their stages of journey. However, if the cloud did not lift itself up, then they would not break camp until the day when it lifted itself up. For God's cloud was over the tabernacle by day, and a fire continued upon it by night in the sight of all house of Israel during all their stages of journey."
Black Ink--Blible Page/Text
Blue Ink -- Understand & Pray
Leviticus 1-27
1 And God proceeded to call Moses and speak to him out of the tent of meeting, saying -- "Speak to the sons of Israel, and you must say to them, 'In case some man of you would present an offering to God from the domestic animals, you should present your offering from the herd and the flock. "'If his offering is a burnt offering from the herd, a male, a sound (healthy) one, is what he should present. At the entrance of the tent of meeting he should present it of his own free will before God. And he must lay his hands upon the head of the burnt offering, and it must be graciously accepted for him to make atonement for him. "'Then the young bull must be slaughtered before God -- and the sons of Aaron, the priests, must present the blood and sprinkle the blood round about upon the altar, which is at the entrance of the meeting. And the burnt offering must be skinned and cut up into its parts. And the sons of Aaron, the priests, must put fire on the altar and set wood in order on the fire. And the sons of Aaron, the priests, must set the pieces in order with the head and the suet (hard white fat of cattle, sheep and other animals to make pudding, pantry, minced meats) over the wood that is on the fire that is on the altar. And its intestines and its shanks will be washed with water -- and the priest must make all of it smoke on the altar as a burnt offering, an offering made by fire of a restful odor to God. "'If his offering for a burnt offering is from the flock, from the young rams or the goats, a male, a sound (healthy) one is what he will present. And it must be slaughtered at the side of the altar to the north before God, and the sons of Aaron, the priests, must sprinkle its blood round about upon the altar. And he must cut it up into its parts and its head and suet, and the priest must set them in order over the wood that is on the fire that is on the altar. And he will wash the intestines and the shanks with water -- and the priest must present all of it and make it smoke on the altar. It is a burnt offering, an offering made by fire of a restful odor to God. "However, if his offering as a burnt offering to God is from the fowls, then he must present his offering from turtledoves or the young pigeons. And the priest must present it at the altar and nip off its head and make it smoke upon the altar, but its blood must be drained out upon the side of the altar. And he must remove its crop with its feathers, and throw it beside the altar, to the east, to the place for the fatty ashes. And he must cleave its wings. He must not divide it. Then the priest must make it smoke on the altar over the wood that is on fire. It is a burnt offering, an offering made by fire of a restful odor to God. 2 "'Now in case some soul would present as an offering a grain offering to God, his offering should prove to be fine flour -- and he must pour oil over it and put frankincense (fragrant resin used for incense and perfume) upon it. And he must bring it to the sons of Aaron, the priests, and the priest must grasp from it his handful of its fine flour and its oil along with all its frankincense -- and he must make it smoke as a remembrancer of it upon the
altar, as an offering made by fire of a restful odor to God. And what is left of the grain offering belongs to Aaron and his sons, as something most holy from God's offerings made by fire. "'And in case you would present as an offering a grain offering in the way of something baked in the oven, it should be of fine flour, unfermented ring shaped cakes moistened with oil or unfermented wafers smeared with oil. "'And if your offering is a grain offering from off the griddle, it should prove to be of fine flour moistened with oil, unfermented. There should be a breaking of it up into pieces, and you must put oil upon it. It is a grain offering. "And if your offering is a grain offering out of the deep-fat kettle, it should be made of fine flour with oil. And you must bring the grain offering that was made of these to God, and it must be presented to the priest and he must bring it near to the altar. And the priest must lift off some of the grain offering as a remembrancer of it and must make it smoke on the altar, as an offering made by fire of a restful odor to God. And what is left of the grain offering belongs to Aaron and his sons, as something most holy of God's offering by fire. "'No grain offering that you will present to God should be made a leavened thing, because you must make no sourdough and no honey at all smoke as an offering made by fire to God. "'As an offering of the 1st fruits, you will present them to God, and they must not come up onto the altar for a restful odor. "'And every offering of your grain offering you will season with salt, and you must not allow the salt of the covenant of your God to be missing upon your grain offering. Along with every offering of yours you will present salt. "'And if you would present the grain offering of the 1st ripe fruits to God, you should present green ears roasted with fire, the grits of new grain, as the grain offering of your 1st ripe fruits. And you must put oil upon it and place frankincense upon it. It is grain offering. And the priest must make the remembrancer of it smoke, that is, some of its grits and oil, along with all its frankincense, as an offering made by fire to God. 3 "'And if his offering is a communion sacrifice, if he is presenting it from the herd, whether a male or a female, a sound (healthy) one is what he will present before God. And he must lay his hand upon the head of his offering, and it must be slaughtered at the entrance of the tent of meeting, and Aaron's sons, the priests, must sprinkle the blood round about upon the altar. And he must present some of the communion sacrifice as an offering made by fire to God, namely, the fat that covers intestines, even all the fat that is over the intestines, and the 2 kidneys and the fat that is upon them, the same as that is upon the loins. And as for the appendage upon the liver, he will remove it along with the kidneys. And Aaron's sons must make it smoke on the altar, upon the burnt offering that is over the wood that is on the fire, as an offering made by fire of a restful odor to God. "'And if his offering is from the flock for a communion sacrifice to God, a male or a female, a sound (healthy) one is what he will
present. If he is presenting a young ram as his offering, then he must present it before God. And he must lay his hand upon the head of his offering and it must be slaughtered before the tent of meeting -- and Aaron's sons must sprinkle its blood round about upon the altar. And from the communion sacrifice he must present its fat as an offering made by fire to God. The entire fatty tail is what he will remove near the backbone, and the fat that covers the intestines, even all the fat that is upon the intestines, and the 2 kidneys and the fat that is upon them, the same as that upon the loins. And as for the appendage upon the liver, he will remove it along with the kidneys. And the priest must make it smoke on the altar as food, an offering made by fire to God. "'And if his offering is a goat, then he must present it before God. And he must lay his hand upon its head, and it must be slaughtered before the tent of meeting -- and Aaron's sons must sprinkle its blood round about upon the altar. And from it he must present as his offering, as an offering made by fire to God, the fat that covers the intestines and even all the fat that is upon the intestines, and the 2 kidneys and the fat that is upon them, the same as that upon the loins. And as for the appendage upon the liver, he will remove it along with the kidneys. And the priest must make them smoke upon the altar as food, an offering made by fire for a restful odor. All the fat belongs to God. "'It is a statute (regulation) to time indefinite for your generations, in all your dwelling places -- You must must not eat any fat or any blood at all.'" 4 And God went on to speak to Moses, saying -- "Speak to the sons of Israel, saying, 'In case a soul sins by mistake in any of the things that God commands should not be done, and he actually does one of them -- "'If the priest, the anointed one (religious officer), sins so as to bring guiltiness upon the people, then he must present for his sin that he has committed a sound (healthy) young bull to God as a sin offering. And he must bring the bull to the entrance of the tent of meeting before God and must lay his hand upon the bull's head, and he must slaughter the bull before God. And the priest, the anointed one, must take some of the bull's blood and bring it into the tent of meeting. and the priest must dip his finger in the blood and spatter some of the blood 7 times before God in front of the curtain of the holy place. And the priest must put some of the blood upon the horns of the altar of perfumed incense before God, which is in the tent of meeting, and all the rest of the bull's blood he will pour at the base of the altar of burnt offering, which is at the entrance of the tent of meeting. "'As for all the fat of the bull of the sin offering, he will lift up from it the fat that covers over the intestines, even all the fat that is over the intestines, and the 2 kidneys and the fat that is upon them, the same as that upon the loins. And as for the appendage upon the liver, he will remove it along with the kidneys. It will be the same as what is lifted up of a bull of the communion sacrifice. And the priest must make them smoke upon the altar of burnt offering. "'But as for the skin of the bull and all its flesh along with
its head and its shanks and its intestines and its dung (manure), he must have the entire bull taken out to the outskirts of the camp to a clean place where the fatty ashes are poured out, and he must burn it upon wood in the fire. Where the fatty ashes are poured out it should be burned. "' Now if the entire assembly of Israel makes a mistake and the matter has been hidden from the eyes of the congregation in that they have done one of all the things that God commands should not be done and so have become guilty, and the sin that they have committed against it has become known, then the congregation must present a young bull for a sin offering and must bring it before the tent of meeting. And the older men of the assembly must lay their hands upon the bull's head before God, and the bull must be slaughtered before God. "'Then the priest, the anointed one, must bring some of the bull's blood into the tent of meeting. And the priest must dip his finger into some of the blood and spatter it 7 times before God in front of the curtain. And he will put some of the blood upon the horns of the altar that is before God, which is in the tent of meeting -- and all the rest of the blood he will pour at the base of the altar of burnt offering, which is at the entrance of the tent of meeting. And he will lift up all its fat from it, and he must make it smoke on the altar. And he must do to the bull just as he did to the other bull of the sin offering. That is the way he will do to it -- and the priest must make an atonement for them, and so it must be forgiven them. And he must have the bull taken out to the outskirts of the camp and must burn it, just as he burned the 1st bull. It is an sin offering for the congregation. "'When a chieftain sins and he does commit unintentionally one of all the things that God his Lord commands should not be done, and so has become guilty, or his sin that he has committed against the commandment has been made known to him, then he must bring as his offering a male kid of the goats, a sound (healthy) one. And he must lay his hand upon the head of the young goat and slaughter it in the place where the burnt offering is regularly slaughtered before God. It is a sin offering. And the priest must take some of the blood of the sin offering with his finger and put it upon the horns of the altar of burnt offering, and he will pour the rest of its blood at the base of the altar of burnt offering. And he will make all its fat smoke on the altar like the fat of the communion sacrifice -- and the priest must make an atonement for him for his sin, and so it must be forgiven him. ""And if any soul of the people of the land sins unintentionally by his doing one of the things that God commands should not be done and he does become guilty, or his sin that he has committed has been made known to him, then he must bring as his offering a female kid of the goats, a sound (healthy) one, for his sin that he has committed. And he must lay his hand upon the head of the sin offering and slaughter the sin offering in the same place as the burnt offering. And the priest must take some of its blood with his finger and put it upon the horns of the altar of
burnt offering and he will pour all the rest of its blood at the base of the altar. And he will remove all its fat, just as the fat was removed from off the communion sacrifice -- and the priest must make it smoke on the altar as a restful odor to God -- and the priest must make an atonement for him, and so it must be forgiven him. "'But if he would bring a lamb as his offering for a sin offering, a sound (healthy) female lamb is what he should bring. And he must lay his hand upon the head of the sin offering and slaughter it as a sin offering in the place where the burnt offering is regularly slaughtered. And the priest must take some of the blood of the sin offering with his finger and put it upon the horns of the altar of burnt offering, and he will pour all the rest of its blood at the base of the altar. And he will remove all its fat the same as the fat of the young ram of the communion sacrifice is regularly removed, and the priest must make them smoke on the altar upon the God's offering made by fire, and the priest must make an atonement for him for his sin that he has committed, and so it must be forgiven for him. 5 "'Now in case a soul sins in that he has heard public cursing (or a wrong) and he is a witness or he has seen it or has come to know of it, if he does not report it, then he must answer for this (his) error. "'Or when a soul touches some unclean thing, whether the dead body of an unclean wild beast or the dead body of an unclean domestic animal or dead body of an unclean swarming creatures, although it has been hidden from him, still he is unclean and has become guilty. Or in case he touches the uncleanness of a man as respects to any uncleanness of his with which he may become unclean, although it had been hidden from him, and yet he himself has come to know it, then he has become guilty. "'Or in case a soul swears to the extent of speaking thoughtlessly with his lips to do evil or to do good as respects anything at all that the man might speak thoughtlessly in a sworn statement, although it had been hidden from him, and yet he himself has come to know it, then he has become guilty as respects to one of these things. "'And it must occur that in case he becomes guilty as respects to one of these things, then he must confess in what way he has sinned. And he must bring his guilty offering (offering is a giving to God, sometimes sacrificing an animal for restoring covenant with God, and beg for forgiveness) to God for his sin that he has committed, namely, a female from the flock, a female lamb or a female kid of the goats, for a sin offering (offering to God for forgiveness of sin) and the priest must make an atonement (religious amends) for him for his sin. "'If, though, he cannot afford enough for a sheep, then he must bring as his guilt offering for the sin that he has committed 2 turtledoves or 2 pigeons to God, one for a sin offering and one for a burnt offering. And he must bring them to the priest, who must present 1st the one for the sin offering, and nip off its head at the front of its neck, but he should not sever it. And he must spatter some of the blood of the sin offering upon the side of the altar, but the remainder of the blood will be drained out at the base of the altar. It is a sin offering. And the other one he will handle as a burnt offering according to the regular procedure,
and the priest must make an atonement (begging for forgiveness from God) for him for his sin that he has committed, and so it must be forgiven him. "'Now if he does not have the means for 2 turtledoves or 2 young pigeons, then he must bring as his offering for the sin he has committed the 10th of ephah (1 ephah is 22 liter, so 1/10 of it is 2.2 liter) of fine flour for a sin offering. He must not put oil upon it, and he must not place frankincense upon it, for it is a sin offering. And he must bring it to the priest, and the priest must grasp from it his handful as a remembrancer of it and must make it smoke on the altar upon God's offerings made by fire. It is a sin offering. And the priest must make an atonement for him for his sin that he has committed, any one of these sins, and so it must be forgiven him -- and it must become priest's the same as grain offering'" And God continued to speak to Moses, saying -- "In case a soul (person) behaves unfaithfully in that he actually sins by mistake against holy things of God, then he must bring as his guilt offering to God -- a sound (healthy) ram from the flock, according to the estimated value in silver shekels, by the shekel of the holy place, as a guilt offering. And he will make compensation for the sin he has committed against the holy place and he will add to it a 5th of it, and he must give it to the priest, that the priest may make an atonement for him with the ram of the guilt offering, and so it must be forgiven him. "And if a soul sins in that he does do one of all the things that God commands should not be done, although he did not know it, yet he has become guilty and must answer for his error. And he must bring a sound (healthy) ram from the flock according to the estimated value, for a guilt offering, to the priest -- and the priest must make of atonement for him for his mistake that he committed unintentionally, although he himself did not know it, and so it must be forgiven him. It is a guilt offering. He has positively become guilty against God." 6 And God went on to speak to Moses, saying -- "In case a soul sins in that he does behave unfaithfully toward God and does deceive his associate (co-worker) about something in his charge or a deposit in hand, or a robbery or he does defraud (rob, cheat) his associate, or he does find something lost and is actually deceptive about it and does swear falsely over any of all the things that the man might do to sin by them, then it must occur that in case he sins and indeed become guilty, he must return the robbed thing which he has robbed or the extorted (taken by force) thing which he has taken by fraud (deceit) or the thing in his charge or the thing lost that he has found, or anything at all over which he might swear falsely, and he must make compensation for it in its full amount, and he will add to it a 5th (1/5) of it. To the one whose it is he will give it on the day his guilt is proved. And as his guilt offering he will bring to God a sound (healthy) ram from the flock according to the estimated value, for a guilt offering, to the priest. And the priest must make an atonement for him before God, and so it must be forgiven him regarding any of all the things that he might do resulting in guiltiness by it." And God continued to speak to Moses, saying -- "Command Aaron and his
sons, saying, 'This is the law of the burnt offering. The burnt offering will be on the hearth upon the altar all night long until the morning, and the fire of the altar will be kindled in it. And the priest must clothe himself with his official dress of linen, and he will put the linen drawers on over his flesh. Then he must lift up the fatty ashes of the burnt offering that the fire regularly consumes upon the altar, and he must place them beside the altar. And he must strip off his garments and put on other garments, and he must take the fatty ashes out to a clean place outside the camp. And the fire on the altar will be kept burning on it. It must not go out. And the priest must burn wood on it morning by morning, and set the burnt offering in order over it, and he must make the fatty pieces of the communion sacrifices smoke over it. Fire will be kept constantly burning on the altar. It must not go out. "'Now this is the law of the grain offering -- You sons of Aaron, present it before God in front of the altar. And one of them must lift up by his handful some of the fine flour of the grain offering and some of its oil and all the frankincense that is upon the grain offering, and he must make it smoke upon the altar as a restful odor for a remembrancer of it to God. And what is left of it Aaron and his sons will eat. It will be eaten as unfermented cakes in a holy place. They will eat it in the courtyard of the tent of meeting. It should not be baked with anything leavened. I have given it as their share out of my offerings made by fire. It is something most holy, like the sin offering and like the guilt offering. Every male among the sons of Aaron will eat it. It is an allowance to time indefinite throughout your generations from God's offerings made by fire. Everything that may touch them will become holy." And God went on speaking to Moses, saying -- "This is the offering of Aaron and his sons that they will present to God on the day of his being anointed-- 10th (1/10) of ephah (1 ephah is 22 liter 1/10 ephah = 2.2 liter =9 cups) of fine flour as a grain offering constantly, 1/2 of it in the morning and 1/2 of it in the evening. It will be made with oil upon a griddle. You will bring it well mixed. You will present the pastries of the grain offering in pieces as a restful odor to God. And the priest, the one anointed in place of him from among his sons, will make it. It is a regulation to time indefinite. As a whole offering it will be made to smoke to God. And every grain offering of a priest should prove to be a whole offering. It must not be eaten." And God spoke further to Moses, saying -- "Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying, 'This is the law of the sin offering -- In the place where the burnt offering is regularly slaughtered the sin offering will be slaughtered before God. It is a most holy thing. The priest who offers it for sin will eat it-- in a holy place it will be eaten in the courtyard of the tent of meeting. Everything that may touch its flesh will become holy, and when anyone spatters some of its blood upon the garment, you will wash what he spatters blood upon in a holy place. And the earthenware vessel in which it may be boiled is to be shattered. But if it was boiled in a copper vessel, then it must be scoured and rinsed with water.
"Every male among the priests will eat it. It is something most holy. However, no sin offering of which some of the blood will be brought into the tent of meeting to make atonement in the holy place must be eaten. It is to be burned with fire. 7 "'And this is the law of the guilt offering. It is something most holy. In the place where they regularly slaughter the burnt offering they will slaughter the guilt offering, and its blood one will sprinkle round about upon the altar. As for its fat, he will present of it the fatty tail and the fat that covers the intestines, and the 2 kidneys and the fat that is upon them the same as that upon the loins. And as for the appendage upon the liver, he will remove it along with the kidneys. And the priest must make them smoke on the altar as an offering made by fire to God. It is a guilt offering. Every male among the priests will eat it. In a holy place it will be eaten. It is something most holy. Like the sin offering, so is the guilt offering. There is one law for them. The priest who will make atonement with it, his it will become. "'As for the priest who presents the burnt offering of any man, the skin of the burnt offering that he has presented to the priest will become his. "'And every grain offering that may be baked in the oven and every one made in the deep fat kettle and upon the griddle belongs to the priest who presents it. It will become his. But every grain offering that is moistened with oil or dry will come to be for all of Aaron's sons, for the one the same as for the other. "'Now this is the law of the communion sacrifice that anyone will present to God -- If he would present it in expression of thanksgiving, then he must present along with the sacrifice of thanksgiving unfermented ring-shaped cakes moistened with oil, and unfermented wafers smeared with oil and well- mixed fine flour as ring shaped cakes moistened with oil. Along with the ring shaped cakes of leavened bread he will present his offering together with the thanksgiving sacrifice of his communion sacrifices. And out of it he must present one of each offering as a sacred portion to God, as for the priest who sprinkles the blood of the communion sacrifices, it will become his. And the flesh of the thanksgiving sacrifice of his communion sacrifices is to be eaten on the day of his offering. He must not save up any of it until morning. "'And if the sacrifice of his offering is a vow or a voluntary offering, it is to be eaten on the day of his presenting his sacrifice, and on the next day what is left of it also may be eaten. But what is left of the flesh of the sacrifice on the 3rd day is to be burned with fire. However, if any of the flesh of his communion sacrifice should at all be eaten on the 3rd day, the one presenting it will not be accepted with approval. It will not be put to his account. It will become a foul thing, and the soul that eats some of it will answer for his error. And the flesh that may touch anything unclean is not to be eaten. It is to be burned with fire. As for the flesh, everybody clean may eat the flesh. "'And the soul who eats the flesh of the communion sacrifice,
which is for God, while his uncleanness is upon him, that soul must be cut off from his people. And in case a soul touches anything unclean, the uncleanness of a man or an unclean beast or any unclean loathsome (hateful) thing, and actually eats some of the flesh of the communion sacrifice, which is for God, that soul must be cut off from his people.'" And God continued to speak to Moses, saying -- "Speak to the sons of Israel, saying, 'You must not eat any fat of a bull or a young ram or a goat. Now the fat of a body already dead and the fat of an animal torn to pieces may be used for anything else you could think of, but you must not eat it at all. For anyone eating fat from the beast from which he present it as an offering made by fire to God, the soul that eats must be cut off from his people. "'And you must not eat any blood in any places where you dwell, whether that of fowl or that of beast. Any soul who eats any blood, that soul must be cut off from his people.'" And God went on to speak to Moses, saying -- "Speak to sons of Israel, 'He who presents his communion sacrifice to God will bring his offering to God from his communion sacrifice. His hands will bring as God's offerings made by fire the fat upon the breast. He will bring it with the breast to wave it to and fro as a wave offering before God. And the priest must make the fat smoke upon the altar, but the breast must become Aaron's and his sons'. "'And you will give the right leg as a sacred portion to the priest from your communion sacrifices. That one of Aaron's sons who presents the blood of the communion sacrifices and the fat, the right leg will become his as a portion. For the breast of the wave offering and the leg of the sacred portion I do take from the sons of Israel from their communion sacrifices, and I shall give them to Aaron the priest and his sons, as a regulation to time indefinite, from the sons of Israel. "'This was the priestly share of Aaron and the priestly share of his sons from God's offerings made by fire, on the day that he presented them to act as priests to God, just as God had commanded to give it to them on the day of his anointing them from among the sons of Israel. It is a statute to time indefinite for their generations.'" This is the law concerning the burnt offering, the grain offering and the sin offering and the guilt offering and the installation sacrifice and the communion sacrifice, just as God had commanded Moses in Mount Sinai in the day of his commanding the sons of Israel to present their offerings to God in the wilderness of Sinai. 8 And God proceeded to speak to Moses, saying -- "Take Aaron and his sons with him and the garments and the anointing oil, and the bull of the sin offering and the 2 rams and the basket of unfermented cakes, and make all the assembly congregate at the entrance of the tent of meeting." Then Moses did just as God had commanded him, and the assembly congregated at the entrance of the tent of meeting. Moses now said to the assembly -- "This is the
thing that God has given command to do." So Moses brought Aaron and his sons near and washed them with water. After that he put the robe upon him and girded him with the sash and clothed him with the sleeveless coat and put the ephod upon him and girded him with the girdle of the ephod, and bound it closely to him with it. Next he placed the breastpiece upon him and put in the breastpiece the Urim and the Thummim ("guilt & innocent" plates worn by Hebrew priests). Then he placed the turban upon his head and placed upon the turban at the forefront of it the shining plate of gold, the holy sign of dedication, just as God had commanded Moses. Moses now took the anointing oil, and anointed the tabernacle and all that was in it and sanctify him. After that he spattered some of it 7 times upon the altar, and anointed the altar and all its utensils and the basin and its stand so as to sanctify them. Finally he poured some of the anointing oil upon Aaron's head and anointed him so as to sanctify him. Moses then brought Aaron's sons near and clothed them with robes and girded them with sashes and wrapped the headgear upon them, just as God had commnaded Moses. Then he led up the bull of the sin offering and Aaron and his sons laid their hands upon the head of the bull of the sin offering. And Moses proceeded to slaughter it and take the blood and put it with his finger upon the horns of the altar round about and purify the altar from sin, but the rest of the blood he poured at the base of the altar, that he might sanctify it to make atonement upon it. After that he took all the fat that was upon the intestines, and the appendage of the liver, and the 2 kidneys and their fat and Moses made them smoke upon the altar. And he had the bull and its skin and its flesh and its dung burned with fire outside the camp, just as God had commanded Moses. He now brought the ram of the burnt offering near, and Aaron and his sons then laid their hands upon the head of the ram. After that Moses slaughtered it and sprinkled the blood round about upon the altar. And he cut up the ram into the pieces, and Moses proceeded to make the head and the pieces and the suet smoke. And the intestines and the shanks he washed with water, and Moses then made the entire ram smoke upon the altar. It was a burnt offering for a restful odor. It was an offering made by fire to God, just as God had commanded Moses. Then he brought the 2nd ram, the ram of the installation, near, and Aaron and his sons laid their hands upon the ram's head. After that Moses slaughtered it and took some of its blood and put it upon the Aaron's right and upon the thumb of his right hand and upon the big toe of his right foot. Next Moses brought Aaron's sons near and put some of the blood upon the lobe of their right ear and upon the thumb of their right hand, and upon the big toe of their right foot -- but Moses sprinkled the rest of the blood round about upon the altar. Then he took the fat and the fat tail and all the fat was upon the intestines, and the appendage of the liver and the 2 kidneys and their fat and the right leg. And out of the basket of unfermented cakes that was before God he took one unfermented
ring shaped cake and one ring shaped cake of oiled bread, and one wafer. He then placed them upon the fatty pieces and the right leg. After that he put all of them upon the palms of Aaron and the palms of his sons, and began to wave them to and fro as a wave offering before God. Then Moses took them off their palms and made them smoke upon the altar on top of the burnt offering. They were an installation sacrifice for a restful odor. It was an offering made by fire to God. And Moses proceeded to take the breast and to wave it to and fro as a wave offering before God. From the installation ram it became the portion for Moses, just as God had commanded Moses. After that Moses took some of the anointing oil and some of the blood that was upon the altar and spattered it upon Aaron and his garments and upon his sons and the garments of his sons with him. Thus he sanctified Aaron and his garments and his sons and the garments of his sons with him. Then Moses said to Aaron and his sons -- "Boil the flesh at the entrance of the tent of meeting and there is where you will eat it and the bread that is in the installation basket, just as I was given the command, saying, 'Aaron and his sons will eat it.' And what is left over of the flesh and the bread you will burn with fire. And you must not go out from the entrance of the tent of meeting for 7 days, until the day of fulfilling the days of your installation, because it will take 7 days to fill your hand with power. Just as it has been done this day, God has commanded to be done so as to make atonement for you. And you will stay at the entrance of the tent of meeting day and night for 7 days, and you must keep the obligatory watch of God, that you may not die -- for so I have been commanded." And Aaron and his sons proceeded to do all things that God had commanded by means of Moses. 9 And it came about on the 8th day that Moses called Aaron and his sons and the older men of Israel. Then he said to Aaron -- "Take for yourself a young calf for a sin offering, and a ram for a burnt offering, sound (healthy) ones, and present them before God. But to the sons of Israel you will speak, saying, 'Take a male goat for a sin offering, and a calf and a young ram, each a year old, sound (healthy) ones, for a burnt offering, and a bull and a ram for communion sacrifices to sacrifice them before God, and a grain offering moistened with oil, because today is when God will certainly appear to you.'" Accordingly they took what Moses had commanded before tent of meeting. Then the whole assembly came near and stood before God. And Moses went on to say -- "This is the thing that God has commanded you should do, that the glory of God may appear to you" Then Moses said to Aaron -- "Go near to the altar and render up your sin offering and your burnt offering, and make atonement in your own behalf and in behalf of your house -- and render up the offering of the people and make atonement in their behalf, just as God has commanded." Aaron immediately went near to the altar and slaughtered the calf of the sin offering that was for him. Then Aaron's sons presented the blood to him and he dipped his finger in the
blood and put it upon the horns of the altar, and the rest of the blood he poured at the base of the altar. And he made the fat and the kidneys and the appendage of the liver from the sin offering smoke upon the altar, just as God had commanded Moses. And he burned the flesh and the skin outside the camp. Then he slaughtered the burnt offering and Aaron's sons handed him the blood and he sprinkled it round about upon the altar. And they handed him the burnt offering in its pieces and the head, and he proceeded to make them smoke upon the altar. Further, he washed the intestines and the shanks, and made them smoke upon the burnt offering on the altar. He now went presenting the offering of the people and took the goat of the sin offering that was for the people and slaughtered it and made an offering for sin with it as with the 1st. Then he presented the burnt offering and handled it according to the regular procedure. He next presented the grain offering and filled his hand with some of it and made it smoke upon the altar, apart from the burnt offering of the morning. After that he slaughtered the bull and the ram of the communion sacrifice that was for the people. Then Aaron's sons handed him the blood and he sprinkled it round about upon the altar. As for the fatty pieces of the bull and the fat tail of the ram and the fat covering and the kidneys and the appendage of the liver, they now placed the fatty pieces upon the breasts, after which he made the fatty pieces smoke upon the altar. But the breast and the right leg Aaron waved to and fro as a wave offering before God, just as Moses had commanded. Then Aaron raised his hands toward the people and blessed them and came down from rendering the sin offering and the burnt offering and the communion sacrifices. Finally Moses and Aaron went into the tent of meeting and came out and blessed the people. Then God's glory appeared to all the people, and fire came out from before God and began consuming the burnt offering and the fatty pieces upon the altar. When all the people got to see it, they broke out into shouting and went falling upon their faces. 10 Later on Aaron's sons Nadab and Abihu took up and brought each one his fire holder and put fire in them and placed incense upon it, and they began offering before God illegitimate fire, which he had not prescribed for them. At this a fire came out from before God and consumed them, so they died before God. Then Moses said to Aaron -- "This is what God has spoken, saying, 'Among those near to me let me be sanctified, and before the face of all the people let me be glorified.'" And Aaron kept silent. So Moses called Mishael and Elzapham, the sons of Uzziel, Aaron's uncle, and said to them -- "Come near, carry your brothers from in front of the holy place to outside the camp." They accordingly came near and carried them in their robes to outside the camp, just as Moses had spoken.
Subsequently Moses said to Aaron and to Eleazar and Ithamar his other sons -- "Do not let your heads go ungroomed, and you must not tear your garments -- that you may not die and that he may not become indignant against all the assembly -- but your brothers of the whole house of Israel will do the weeping over the burning, which God has made burn. And from the entrance of the tent of meeting you must not go out for fear you may die, because God's anointing oil is upon you." So they did according to Moses' word. And God proceeded to speak to Aaron, saying --"Do not drink wine or intoxicating liquor, you and your sons with you, when you come into the tent of meeting, that you may not die. It is a statute to time indefinite for your generations, both in order to make a distinction between the holy thing and the profane and between the unclean and the clean, and in order to teach the sons of Israel all the regulations that God has spoken to them by means of Moses." Then Moses spoke to Aaron and to Eleazar and Ithamar, his sons that were left -- "Take the grain offering that was left over from God's offerings made by fire and eat it unfermented near the altar, because it is something most holy. And you must eat it in a holy place, because it is your allowance and the allowance of your sons from God's offerings made by fire, for so I have been commanded. And you will eat the breast of the wave offering and the leg of the sacred portion in a clean place, you and your sons and your daughters with you, because they have been given as your allowance and the allowance of your sons from the communion sacrifices of the sons of Israel. They will bring the leg of the sacred portion and the breast of the wave offering along with the offerings made by fire, of the fatty pieces. in order to wave the wave offering to and fro before God, and it must serve as an allowance to time indefinite for you and your sons with you, just as God has commanded." And Moses searched thoroughly for the goat of the sin offering, and, look! it had been burned up. So he grew indignant at Eleazar and Ithamar, Aaron's sons that were left, saying --"Why did you not eat the sin offering in the place that is holy since it is something most holy and he has given it to you that you may answer for the error of the assembly so as to make atonement for them before God? Look! Its blood has not been brought into the holy place within. You should have eaten it without fail in the holy place, just as I had been commanded." At this Aaron spoke to Moses -- "Look! Today they have presented their sin offering and their burnt offering before God, while such things as these began to befall me -- and had I eaten the sin offering today, would it prove satisfactory in God's eyes?" When Moses got to hear that, then it proved satisfactory in his eyes. 11 And God proceeded to speak to Moses and Aaron saying to them --""Speak to the sons of Israel, saying -- 'This is the living creature that you may eat of all the beasts that you may eat of all the beasts that are upon the earth -- Every creature that splits the hoof and forms a cleft in the hoofs and chews the cud (partly digested food) among the beasts, that is what you may eat. "'Only this is what you must not eat among the chewers of the
cud and the splitters of the hoof -- the camel, because it is a chewer of the cud but is no splitter of the hoof. It is unclean for you. Also the rock badger, because it is a chewer of the cud but does not split the hoof. It is unclean for you. Also the hare, because it is a chewer of the cud but it does not have the hoof split. It is unclean for you. Also the pig, because it is a splitter of the hoof and a former of a cleft in the hoof, but it itself does not chew the cud. It is unclean for you. You must not eat any of their flesh, and you must not touch their dead body. They are unclean for you. "'This is what you may eat of everything that is in the waters -- Everything that has fins and scales in the waters, in the seas and in the torrents, those you may eat. And everything in the seas and the torrents that has no fins and scales, out of every swarming creature of the waters and out of every living soul that is in the waters, they are a loathsome thing for you. Yes, they will become a loathsome thing to you. You must not eat any of their flesh, and you are to loathe their dead body. Everything in the waters that has no fins and scales is a loathsome thing to you. "'And these are what you will loathe among the flying creatures. They should not be eaten. They are a loathsome thing -- the eagle and the osprey and the black vulture and the red kite and the black kite according to its kind, and every raven according to its kind, and the ostrich and the owl and the gull and the falcon according to its kind, and the little owl and the cormorant and the long-eared owl and the swan and the pelican and the vulture, and the stork, the heron according to its kind, and the hoopoe and the bat. Every winged swarming creature that goes on all 4s is a loathsome thing to you. '''Only this is what you may eat of all the winged swarming creatures that go upon all 4s, those that have leaper legs above their feet with which to leap upon the earth. These are the ones of them you may eat of the migratory locust according to its kind, and the edible locust after its kind, and the cricket according to its kind, and the grasshopper according to its kind. And every other winged swarming (grouping) creature with 4 legs is a loathsome thing to you. So by these you would make yourselves unclean. Everyone touching their dead bodies will be unclean until the evening. Everyone carrying any of their dead bodies will wash his garments, and he must be unclean until the evening. "'As for any animal that is a splitter of the hoof but is not a former of a cleft and is not a chewer of the cut, they are unclean for you. Everyone touching them will be unclean. As for every creature going upon its paws among all the living creatures that go on all 4s, they are unclean to you. Everyone touching their dead bodies will be unclean until the evening. And he who carries their dead bodies will wash his garments, and he must be unclean until evening. They are unclean to you. And this is what is unclean to you among the swarming creatures that swarm upon the earth -- the mole rat and the jerboa and the lizard according its kind, and the gecko fanfoot and the large lizard and the newt and the sand lizard and the chameleon. These are unclean to you among all
the swarming creatures. Everyone touching them in their death state will be unclean until the evening. "'Now anything upon which any of them should fall in its death state will be unclean, whether it be some wooden vessel (container) or a garment or a skin or sackcloth. Any vessel of which some use is made will be put to water, and it must be unclean until the evening and then be clean. As for any earthenware vessel into which any of them should fall, anything that is within it will be unclean, and you will smash it. Any sort of food that may be eaten upon which water may come from it will be unclean, and any drink that may be drunk in any vessel will be unclean. Everything upon which any of their dead bodies may fall will be unclean. Whether oven or jar stand, it is to be broken down. They are unclean, and they will become unclean to you. Only a spring and a pit of impounded waters will continue clean, but anyone touching their dead bodies will be unclean. And should any of their dead bodies fall upon any seed of a plant that is to be sown, it is clean. But in case water should be put upon seed and something of their dead bodies had fallen upon it, it is unclean to you. "'Now in case any beast that is yours for food should die, he who touches its dead body will be unclean until the evening. And he who eats any of its dead body will wash his garments, and he must be unclean until the evening -- and he who carries off its dead body will wash his garments, and he must be unclean until the evening. And every swarming creature (grouping) that swarms upon the earth is a loathsome thing. It must not be eaten. As for any creature that goes upon the belly and any creature that goes on all 4s, or any great number of feet of all the swarming creatures that swarm upon the earth, you must not eat them, because they are a loathsome thing. Do not make your souls loathsome with any swarming creature that swarms, and you must not make yourselves unclean by them and actually get unclean by them. For I am God your Lord, and you must sanctify yourselves and you must prove yourselves holy, because I am holy. So you must not make your souls unclean by any swarming creature that moves upon the earth. For I am God who is leading you up out of the land of Egypt to prove myself God to you, and you must prove yourselves holy, because I am holy. "'This is the law about the beast and the flying creature and every living soul that moves about in the waters and concerning every soul that swarms upon the earth, in order to make a distinction between the unclean and the clean, and between the living creature that is eatable and the living creature that may not be eaten.'" 12 And God went on to speak to Moses, saying --"Speak to the sons of Israel, saying, --'In case a woman conceives seed and does bear a male, she must be unclean 7 days -- as in the days of the impurity when she is menstruating she will be unclean. And on the 8th day the flesh of his foreskin will be circumcised. For 33 days more she will stay in the blood of purification. She should not touch any holy thing, and she should not come into the holy place until the fulfilling of the days of her purification. "'Now if she should bear a female, she must then be
unclean 14 days, as during her menstruation. For 66 days more she will stay with the blood of purification. Then at the fulfilling of the days of her purification for a son or for a daughter she will bring a young ram in its 1st year for a burnt offering and a young pigeon or a turtledove for a sin offering to the entrance of the tent of meeting to the priest. And he must present it before God and make atonement for her, and she must be clean from the source of her blood. This is the law about her who bears either a male or a female. But if she cannot afford enough for a sheep, she must then take 2 turtledoves or 2 young pigeons. 1 for a burnt offering and 1 for a sin offering, and the priest must make atonement for her, and she must be clean.'" 13 And God proceeded to speak to Moses and Aaron, saying--"In case a man develops in the skin of his flesh a eruption (breakout), or a scab or a blotch and it does develop in the skin of his flesh into the plague of leprosy, he must be then brought to Aaron the priest or to one of his sons the priests. And the priest must look at the plague in the skin of the flesh. When the hair in the plague has turned white and the appearance of the plague is deeper than the skin of his flesh, it is the plague of leprosy. And the priest must look at it, and he must declare him unclean. But if the blotch is white in the skin of his flesh, and its appearance is not deeper than the skin and its hair has not turned white, the priest must then quarantine the plague 7 days. And the priest must look at him on the 7th day, and if in the way it looks the plague has stopped, the plague has not spread in the skin, the priest must also quarantine him another 7 days. "'The priest must look at him on the 7th day, the 2nd time, and if the plague has grown dull and the plague has not spread in the skin, the priest must also pronounce him clean. It was a scab. And he must wash his garments and be clean. But if the scab has unquestionably spread in the skin after his appearing before the priest for the establishment of his purification, he must then appear the 2nd time before the priest, and the priest must take a look -- and if the scab has spread in the skin, the priest must then declare him unclean. It is leprosy. In case the plague of leprosy develops in a man, he must then be brought to the priest. The priest must take a look and if there is a white breakout in the skin and it has turned the hair white, and the raw of the living flesh is in the breakout, it is chronic leprosy in the skin of his flesh -- and the priest must declare him unclean. He should not quarantine him, for he is unclean. Now if the leprosy unquestionably breaks out in the skin, and the leprosy does cover all the skin of the one with the plague from his head to his feet to the full sight of the priest's eyes -- and the priest has looked and there the leprosy has covered all his flesh, he must then pronounce the plague clean. All of it has turned white, he is clean. But on the day the living flesh appears in it, he will be unclean. And the priest must see the living flesh, and he must declare him unclean. The living flesh is unclean. It is leprosy. Or in case the living flesh goes back and it does change to white, he must then come to the priest. And the priest must
look at him, and if the plague has been changed to white, the priest must then pronounce the plague clean. He is clean. "As for the flesh, in case a boil develops in its skin and it does get healed, and in the place of the boil a white eruption has developed or a reddish-white blotch, he must then show himself to the priest. And the priest must look, and if its appearance is lower than the skin and its hair has turned white, the priest must then declare him unclean. It is the plague of leprosy. It has broken out in the boil. But if the priest looks at it, and, there now, there is no white hair in it and it is not deeper than the skin and it is dull, the priest must then quarantine him 7 days. And if it unmistakably spreads in the skin, the priest must then declare him unclean. It is a plague. But if in its place the blotch should stand, it has not spread, it is the inflammation of the boil -- and the priest must pronounce him clean. "Or in case there comes to be a scar in the skin of the flesh from the fire, and the raw flesh of the scar does become a reddish-white blotch or a white one, the priest must then look at it, and if the hair has been changed white in the blotch and its appearance is deeper than the skin, it is leprosy. It has broken out in the scar, and the priest must declare him unclean. It is the plague of leprosy. But if the priest looks at it, and, there now, there is no white hair in the blotch and it is not lower than skin and it is dull, the priest must then quarantine him 7 days. And the priest must look at him on the 7th day. If it unmistakably spreads in the skin, the priest must then declare him unclean. It is the plague of leprosy. But if the blotch stands in its place, it has not spread in the skin and it is dull, it is an eruption (breakout) of the scar -- and the priest must pronounce him clean, because it is an inflammation of the scar. "As for a man or a woman, in case a plague develops in such one on the head or on the chin, the priest must then see the plague -- and if its appearance is deeper than the skin, and the hair is yellow and scarce in it, the priest must then declare such one unclean. It is an abnormal falling off of hair. It is leprosy of the head or of the chin. But in case the priest sees the plague of abnormal falling off of hair, and, look! i ts appearance is not deeper than the skin and there is no black hair in it, the priest must then quarantine the plague of abnormal falling off of hair 7 days. And the priest must look at the plague on the 7th day -- and if the abnormal falling off of hair has not spread, and no yellow hair has developed in it and the appearance of the abnormal falling off of hair is not deeper than the skin, he must then have himself shaved, but he will not have the abnormal falling off of hair shaved -- and the priest must quarantine the abnormal falling off of hair 7 days again. "And the priest must look at the abnormal falling off of hair on the 7th day -- and if the abnormal falling off of hair has not spread in the skin, and its appearance is not deeper than the skin, the priest must then pronounce him clean, and he must wash his garments and be clean. But if the abnormal falling off of hair unmistakably spreads in the skin after the establishment of his purification, the priest must then see him -- and if the abnormal falling off of hair has spread in the skin, the
priest need not make examination for yellow hair--he is unclean. But if in its look the abnormal falling off of hair has stood and black hair has grown in it, the abnormal falling off of hair has been healed. He is clean, and the priest must pronounce him clean. "As for a man or a woman, in case blotches develop in the skin of their flesh, white blotches, the priest then must take a look -- and if the blotches in the skin of their flesh are dull white, it is a harmless eruption (breakout). It has broken out in the skin. He is clean. "As for a man, in case his head grows bald, it is baldness. And if his head grows bald up in front, it is forehead baldness. He is clean. But in case a reddish-white plague develops in the baldness of the crown or the forehead, it is leprosy breaking out in the baldness of his crown or of his forehead. And the priest must look at him -- and if there is a eruption (breakout) of the reddish-white plague in the baldness of his crown or of his forehead like the appearance of leprosy in the skin of the flesh, he is a leper. He is unclean. Unclean is what the priest should declare him. His plague is on his head. As for the leprous one in whom the plague is, his garments should be torn, and his head should become ungroomed, and he should cover over the mustache and call out "Unclean, unclean!' All the days that the plague is in him he will be unclean. He is unclean. He s hould dwell isolated. Outside the camp is his dwelling place. "As for a garment, in case the plague of leprosy develops in it, whether in a woolen garment or in linen garment, or in the warp (vertical thread) or in the woof (thread side to side under warp) of the linen and of the wool, or in a skin or in anything made of skin, and the yellowish-green or reddish plague does develop in the garment or in the skin or in the warp or in the woof or in any article of skin, it is the plague of leprosy, and it must be shown to the priest. And the priest must see the plague, and he must quarantine the plague 7 days. When he has seen the plague on the 7th day, that the plague has spread in the garment or in the warp, or in the woof or in the skin for any use for which the skin may be made, the plague is malignant (infectious) leprosy. It is unclean. And he must burn the garment or the warp, or woof in the wool or in the linen, or any article of skin in which the plague may develop because it is malignant (infectious) leprosy. It should be burned in the fire. "But if the priest takes a look, and, there now, the plague has not spread in the garment or in the warp or in the woof or any article of skin, the priest must also command that they should wash that in which the plague is, and he must quarantine it a 2nd 7 days. And the priest must look at the plague after it has been washed out, and if the plague has not changed its look and yet the plague has not spread. It is unclean. You should burn it in the fire. It is a low spot in a threadbare patch on either its under side or its outside. "But if the priest has taken a look, and, there now, the plague is dull after it has been washed out, he must then tear it out of the garment or the skin or the warp or the woof. However, if it still appears in the garment or in the warp or in the woof or in any article of skin, it is breaking out. You should burn in the fire whatever it is i n which the plague is. As for the garment or the warp or the woof
or any article of skin that you may wash, when the plague has disappeared from them, it must then be washed a 2nd time -- and it must be clean. "This is the Law of the plague of leprosy in a garment of wool or of linen, or in any article of skin, in order to pronounce it clean or to declare unclean." 14 And God continued to speak to Moses, saying -- "This will become the law of the leper in the day for establishing his purification, when he must be brought to the priest. And the priest must go forth outside the camp, and the priest must look, and if the plague of leprosy has been cured in the leprous one, the priest must then give command -- and he must take for cleansing himself 2 live clean birds and cedarwood and coccus scarlet material and hyssop. And the priest must give command -- and the one bird must be killed in an earthenware vessel over running water. As for the living bird, he should take it and the cedarwood and the coccus scarlet material and the hyssop, and he must dip them and the living bird in the blood of the bird that was killed over the running water. Then he must spatter it 7 times upon the one cleansing himself from the leprosy and he must pronounce him clean, and he must send away the living bird over the open field. "And the one cleansing himself must wash his garments and shave off all his hair and bathe in water and must be clean, and afterward he may come into the camp. And he must dwell outside his tent 7 days. And it must occur on the 7th day that he should shave off all his hair on his head and his chin, and his eyebrows. Yes , he should shave off all his hair, and he must wash his garments and bathe his flesh in water, and he must be clean. On the 8th day -- he will take 2 sound (healthy) young rams and 1 sound (healthy) lamb, in its 1st year, and 3/10th of an ephah (approx. 6.6 liter) of fine flour as a grain offering moistened with oil and one log measure (approx. 0.31 liters) of oil -- and the priest who pronounces him clean must present the man who is cleansing himself, and the things, before God at the entrance of the tent of meeting. And the priest must take the one young ram and offer it for a guilt offering together with the log measure of oil, and must wave them to and fro as a wave offering before God. And he must slaughter the young ram in the place where the sin offering and the burnt offering are regularly slaughtered, in a holy place, because like the sin offering, guilt offering belongs to the priest. It is something most holy. "And the priest must take some of the blood of the guilt offering, and the priest must put it upon the lobe of the right ear of the one cleansing himself and upon the thumb of his right hand and upon the big toe of his right foot. And the priest must take some of the log measure of oil and pour it upon the priest's left palm. And the priest must dip his right finger into the oil that is upon his left palm and must spatter some of the oil with his finger 7 times before God. And of the rest of the oil that is upon his palm the priest will put some upon the lobe of the right ear of the one cleansing himself and upon the thumb of his right hand and upon the big toe of his right foot over the blood of the guilt offering. And what is left over of the oil that is upon
the priest's palm he will put upon the head of the one cleansing himself, and the priest must make atonement for him before God. "And the priest must render up the sin offering and make atonement for the one cleansing himself from his impurity, and afterward he will slaughter the burnt offering. And the priest must offer up the burnt offering and the grain offering upon the altar, and the priest must make atonement for him -- and he must be clean. "However, if he is lowly and does not have enough means, he must then take one young ram as a guilt offering for a wave offering in order make atonement for him and 1/10 of ephah (2.2 liter) of fine flour moistened with oil as a grain offering, and a log measure (0.31 liter) of oil, and 2 turtledoves or 2 young pigeons, according as he may have the means, and the one must serve as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering. On the 8th day he must bring them for establishing his purification to the priest at the entrance of the tent of meeting before God. "And the priest must take the young ram of the guilt offering and the log measure of oil, and the priest must wave them to and fro as a wave offering before God. He must slaughter the young ram of the guilt offering and the priest must take some of the blood of the guilt offering and put it upon the lobe of the right ear of the one cleansing himself and upon the thumb of his right hand and upon the big toe of his right foot. And the priest will pour some of oil upon the priest's left palm. And the priest must spatter with his right finger some of the oil that is upon his left palm 7 times before God. And the priest must put some of the oil that is on his palm upon the lobe of the right ear of the one cleansing himself and upon the thumb of his right hand and upon the big toe of his right foot over the place of the blood of the guilt offering. And what is left over of the oil that is on the priest's palm he will put upon the head of the one cleansing himself in order to make atonement for him before God. "And he must render up the one of the turtledoves or of the young pigeons for which he may have the means, the one of them for which he may have the means as a sin offering and other as burnt offering along with the grain offering -- and the priest must make atonement for the one cleansing himself before God. "This is the law for the one in whom the plague of leprosy was who may not have the means when establishing his purification." And God proceeded to speak to Moses and Aaron, saying --"When you come into the land of Canaan, which I am giving you as a possession, and I do put the plague of leprosy in a house of the land of your possession, the one to whom the house belongs must then come and tell the priest, saying, 'Something like a plague has appeared to me in the house.' And the priest must give orders, and they must clear out the house before the priest may come in to see the plague, that he may declare unclean everything that is in the house -- and after that the priest will come in to see the house. When he has seen the plague, then if the plague is in the walls of the house, with yellowish-green or reddish depressions, and their appearance is lower than the wall surface,
the priest must then go out of the house to the entrance of the house and he must quarantine the house 7 days. "And the priest must return on the 7th day and must take a look -- and if the plague has spread in the walls of the house, the priest must then give orders, and they must tear out the stones in which the plague is, and they must throw them outside the city into an unclean place. And he will have the house scraped off all around inside, and they must pour the clay mortar that they cut off outside the city into an unclean place. They must take other stones and insert them in the place of the former stones -- and he will have different clay mortar taken, and he must have the house plastered. "If though, the plague returns and it does break out in the house after having torn out the stones and after having cut off the house and plastered it, the priest must then come in and take a look -- and if the plague has spread in the house, it is malignant (infectious) leprosy in the house. It is unclean. And he must have the house pulled down with its stones and its timbers and all the clay mortar of the house and must have it carried forth outside the city to an unclean place. But whoever comes into the house any of the days of quarantining -- it will be unclean until the evening -- and whoever lies down in the house should wash his garments, and whoever eats in the house should wash his garments. "However, if the priest comes at all and he does take a look, and, there now, the plague has not spread in the house after having plastered the house, the priest must then pronounce the house clean, because the plague has been healed. And to purify the house from sin he must take 2 birds and cedarwood and coccus scarlet material and hyssop. And he must kill the one bird in an earthenware vessel over running water. And he must take the cedarwood and the hyssop and the coccus scarlet material and the live bird and dip them in the blood of the bird that was killed, and in the running water, and he must spatter it toward the house 7 times. And he must purify the house from sin with the blood of the bird and the running water and the live bird and the cedarwood and the hyssop and the coccus scarlet material. And he must send the live bird away outside the city into the open field and must make atonement for the house -- and it must be clean. "This is the law respecting any plague of leprosy and respecting the abnormal falling off of hair and respecting the leprosy of the garment (clothes) and in the house and respecting the eruption (breakout) and the scab and the blotch, in order to give instructions when something is unclean and when something is clean . This is law about leprosy." 15 And God continued to speak to Moses and Aaron, saying -- "Speak to the sons of Israel, and you must say to them, 'In case any man has a running discharge occur from his genital organ, his discharge is unclean. And this will become his uncleanness by his discharge -- Whether his genital organ has flowed with a running discharge, or his genital organ is obstructed from his running discharge, it is his uncleanness. "'Any bed upon which the one having a running discharge may lie down will be unclean, and any article upon which he
may sit will be unclean. And a man who may touch his bed should wash his garments, and he must bathe in water and be unclean until the evening. And whoever sits upon the article upon which the one having a running discharge was sitting should wash his garments (clothes), and he must bathe in water and be unclean until the evening. And whoever touches the flesh of the one having a running discharege should wash his garments, and he must bathe in water and be unclean until the evening. And in case of the one who has a running diacharge spitting upon somone clean, he must in that case wash his garments and bathe in water and be unclean until the evening. And any saddle upon which the one having running a discharge was riding will be unclean. And anyone touching anything that happens to be under him will be unclean until the evening, and he who carries them will wash his garments, and he must bathe in water and be unclean until the evening. Anyone whom the one having a running discharge might touch when he has not rinsed his hands in water must then wash his garments and bathe in water and be unclean until the evening. And an earthenware vessel that the one having a running discharge might touch should be smashed-- and any wooden vessel should be rinsed with water. "'Now in case the one having a running discharge would become clean from his running discharge, he must then count for himself 7 days for his purification, and he must wash his garments and bathe his flesh in running water -- and he must be clean. And on the 8th day he should take for himself 2 turtledoves or 2 young pigeons, and he must come before God to the entrance of the tent of meeting and give them to the priest. And the priest must offer them, the one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering -- and the priest must make atonement for him before God concerning his running discharge. "'Now in case of a man has an emission of semen go out from him, he must then bathe all his flesh in water and be unclean until evening. And any garment and any skin upon which the emission of semen gets to be must be washed with water and be unclean until the evening. "'As for a woman with whom a man may lie down with an emission of semen, they must bathe in water and be unclean until the evening. "'And in case a woman is having a running discharge, and her running discharge in her flesh proves to be blood, she should continue 7 days in her menstrual impurity, and anyone touching her will be unclean until the evening. And anyone tuching her bed should wash his garments, and he must bathe in water and be unclean until the evening. And anyone touching any article upon which she was sitting should wash his garments, and he must bathe in water and be unclean until the evening. And if it was upon the bed or upon another article that she was sitting, by his touching it he will be unclean until the evening. And if a man lies down with her at all and her menstrual impurity comes to be upon him, he must then be unclean 7
days, and any bed upon which he might lie down will be unclean. "'As for a woman, in case the running discharge of her blood should be flowing many days when it is not the regular time of her menstrual impurity, or in case she should have a flow longer than her menstrual impurity, all the days of her unclean running discharge will prove as in the days of her menstrual impurity. She is unclean. Any bed upon which she may lie any of the days of her running discharge will become for her as the bed of her menstrual impurity, and any article upon which she may sit will become unclean like the uncleanness of her menstrual impurity. And anyone touching them will be unclean, and he must wash his garments and bathe in water and be unclean until the evening. "'However, if she has become clean from her running discharge, she must also count for herself 7 days, and afterward she will be clean. And on the 8th day she should take for herself 2 turtledoves or 2 young pigeons, and she must bring them to the priest at the entrance of the tent of meeting. And the priest must make the one a sin offering and the other a burnt offering -- and the priest must make atonement for her before God concerning her unclean running discharge. "'And you must keep the sons of Israel separate from their uncleanness, that they may not die in their uncleanness for their defiling of my tabernacle, which is in their midst. "'This is the law about the man having a running discharge and the man from whom an emission of semen may go out so that he becomes unclean by it -- and the menstruating woman in her uncleanness, and anyone who has a flow of his running discharge, whether a male or a female, and whether a man who lies down with an unclean woman.'" 16 And God proceeded to speak to Moses after the death of Aaron's 2 sons for their approaching before God so that they died. And God proceeded to say to Moses --"Speak to Aaron your brother, that he should not at all times come into the holy place inside the curtain, in front of the cover which is upon the Ark, that he may not die -- because in a cloud I shall appear over the cover. "With the following Aaron should come into the holy place -- with a young bull for a sin offering. He should put on the holy linen robe, and the linen drawers should come upon his flesh, and he should gird himself with the linen sash and wrap himself with the linen turban. They are holy garments. And he must bathe his flesh in water and put them on. "And from the assembly of the sons of Israel he should take 2 male kids of the goats for a sin offering, and 1 ram for a burnt offering. "And Aaron must present the bull of the sin offering, which is for himself, and he must make atonement in behalf of himself and his house. "And he must take the 2 goats and make them stand before God at the entrance of the tent of meeting. And Aaron must draw lots over the 2 goats, the one lot for God and other lot for Azazel. And Aaron must present the goat over which the lot come up for God, and he must make it a sin offering. But the goat over which the lot came up for Azazel should be stood alive
before God to make atonement for it, so as to send it away for Azazel into the wilderness. "And Aaron must present the bull of the sin offering, which is for himself, and make an atonement in behalf of himself and his house -- and he must slaughter the bull of the sin offering, which is for himself. "And he must take the fire holder full of burning coals of fire from off the altar before God, and the hollows of both his hands full of fine perfumed incense, and he must bring them inside the curtain. He must also put the incense upon the fire before God, and the cloud of the incense must overspread the Ark cover, which is upon the Testimony, that he may not die. "And he must take some of the bull's blood and spatter it with his finger in front of the cover on the east side, and he will spatter some of the blood with his finger 7 times before the cover. "And he must slaughter the goat of the sin offering, which is for the people, and he must bring its blood inside the curtain and do with its blood the same as he did with the bull's blood -- and he must spatter it toward the cover and before the cover. "And he must make atonement for the holy place concerning the uncleannesses of the sons of Israel and concerning their revolts in all their sins -- and that is the way he should do for the tent of meeting, which is residing with them in the midst of their uncleannesses. " And no other man should happen to be in the tent of meeting from when he goes in to make atonement in the holy place until he comes out -- and he must make atonement in behalf of himself and in behalf of his house and in behalf of the entire congregation of Israel. "And he must come out to the altar, which is before God, and make atonement for it, and he must take some of the bull's blood and and some of the goat's blood and put it upon the horns of the altar round about. He must also spatter some of the blood upon it with his finger 7 times and cleanse it and sanctify it from the uncleannesses of the sons of Israel. "When he has finished making atonement for the holy place and the tent of meeting and the altar, he must also present the live goat. And Aaron must lay both his hands upon the head of the live goat and confess over it all the errors of the sons of Israel and all their revolts in all their sins, and he must put them upon the head of the goat and send it away by the hand of a ready man into wilderness. And the goat must carry upon itself all their errors into a desert land, and he must send the goat away into the wilderness. "And Aaron must come into the tent of meeting and strip off the linen garments that he put on when he went into the holy place, and he must lay them down there. And he must bathe his flesh in water in a holy place and put on his garments, and come out and render up his burnt offering and the people's burnt offering and make atonement in his own behalf and in behalf of the people. He will make the fat of the sin offering smoke upon the altar. "As for the one who sent the goat away for Azazel, he
should wash his garments, and he must bathe his flesh in water, and after that he may come into the camp. "However, he will have the bull of the sin offering and the goat of the sin offering, the blood of both of which was brought in to make atonement in the holy place, taken forth outside the camp, and they must burn their skins and their flesh and their dung in the fire. And the one who burned them should wash his garments, and he must bathe his flesh in water, and after that he may come into the camp. "And it must serve as a statute to time indefinite for you people -- In the 7th month on the 10th of the month you should afflict your souls, and you must not do any work, either the native or the alien resident who is residing as an alien in your midst. For on this day atonement will be made for you to pronounce you clean. You will be clean from all your sins before God. It is a sabbath of complete rest for you, and you must afflict your souls. It is a statute (regulation) to time indefinite. "And the priest who will be anointed and whose hand will be filled with power to act as priest as successor of his father must make an atonement and must put on the linen garments. They are holy garments. And he must make atonement for the holy sanctuary and for the tent of meeting and for the altar he will make atonement -- and for the priests and for all the people of the congregation he will make atonement. And this must serve as a statute to time indefinite for you, in order to make atonement for the sons of Israel concerning all their sins once in the year." Accordingly he did just as God had commanded Moses. 17 And God went on to speak to Moses, saying -- "Speak to Aaron and his sons and all the sons of Israel, and you must say to them -- 'This is the thing that God has commanded, saying -- '""As for any man of the house of Israel who slaughters a bull or a young ram or a goat in the camp or who slaughters it outside the camp, and does not actually bring it to the entrance of the tent of meeting to present it as an offering to God before the tabernacle of God, bloodguilt will be counted to that man. He has shed blood (murdered), and that man must be cut off from among his people, in order that the sons of Israel may bring their sacrifices, which they are sacrificing in the open field, and they must bring them to God to the entrance of the tent of meeting to the priest, and they must sacrifice these as communion sacrifices to God. And the priest must sprinkle the blood upon God's altar at the entrance of the tent of meeting, and he must make the fat smoke as a restful odor to God. So they should no longer sacrifice their sacrifices to the goat shaped demons with which they are having immoral interc*urse. This will serve as a statute to time indefinite for you, throughout your generations."' And you should say to them, 'As for any man of the house of Israel or some alien resident who may be residing as an alien in your midst who offers up a burnt offering or a sacrifice and does not bring it to the entrance of the tent of meeting to render it to God, that man must be cut off from his people. "'As for any man of the house of Israel or some alien
resident who is residing as an alien in your midst who eats any sort of blood, I shall certainly set my face against the soul that is eating the blood, and I shall indeed cut him off from among his people. For the soul of the flesh is in the blood, and I myself have put it upon the altar for you to make atonement for your souls, because it is the blood that makes atonement by the soul in it. That is why I have said to the sons of Israel--"No soul of you must eat blood, and no alien resident who is residing as an alien in your midst should eat blood." "'As for any soul that eats a body already dead or something torn by a wild beast, whether a native or an alien resident, he must in that case wash his garments and bathe in water, and be unclean until the evening -- and he must be clean. But if he will not wash them and will not bathe his flesh, he must then answer for his error.'" 18 And God continued to speak to Moses, saying--"Speak to the sons of Israel, and you say to them, "I am the Lord your God. The way of Egypt does, in which you dwelt--You must not do, and the way of Canaan does-- in which I am bringing you--You must not do, and in their statutes (regulations) you must not walk (obey). My judicial decisions (God's laws) you must carry out, and my statutes you should keep so as to walk (obey, live) in them. I am Jehovah your Lord. You must keep my statutes and my judicial decisions which if a man will do, he must also live by means of them. I am God. "'You people must not come near, any man of you, to any close fleshly relative of his -- to lay bare nakedness. I am Jehovah. The nakedness of your father and the nakedness of your mother you must not lay bare. She is your mother. You must not lay bare her nakedness. "'The nakedness of your father's wife you must not lay bare -- It is your father's nakedness. "'As for the nakedness of your sister, the daughter of your father or the daughter of your mother, whether born in the same household, or born outside it, you must not lay bare their nakedness. "'As for the nakedness of the daughter of your son or the daughter of your daughter (grand-children) you must not lay bare their nakedness, because they are your nakedness. "'As for the nakedness of the daughter of your father's wife, the offspring of your father, she being your sister, you must not lay bare her nakedness. "'The nakedness of your father's sister (your aunt) you must not lay bare. She is a blood relation to your father. "'The nakedness of your mother's sister (your aunt) you must not lay bare, because she is a blood relation to your mother. "'The nakedness of your father's brother (your uncle) you must not lay
bare. You must not come near his wife. She is your aunt. "'The nakedness of your daughter-in-law you must not lay bare. She is your son's wife. You not lay her nakedness bare. "'The nakedness to your brother's wife (your sister-in -law) you must not lay bare. It is your brother's nakedness. "'The nakedness of a woman and her daughter you must not lay bare. The daughter of her son and the daughter of her daughter you must not take (have relation) in order to lay her nakedness bare. They are cases of blood relationship. It is loose conduct. "'You must not take a woman in addition to her sister (sisters) as a rival to uncover her nakedness, that is, besides her during her lifetime (while she is still alive). "'And you must not come near a woman during the menstruation of her impurity to lay her nakedness bare. "'And you must not give your emission as semen (se*) to the wife of your associate to become unclean (defiled, sin) by it. "'And you must not allow the devoting of any of your offspring to Molech (child sacrifice through fire or war). You must not profane (non religious, Godless) the name of your God that way. I am Jehovah. "And you must not lie down with a male the same as you lie down with a woman. It is a detestable (hated, loathed by God) thing. "'And you must not give your emission (se*) to any beast (animal) to become unclean by it, and a woman should not stand before a beast (animal) to have connection (se*) with it. It is violation of what is natural. "'Do not make yourselves unclean by any of these things, because by all these things the nations whom I am sending out from before you have made themselves unclean (defiled). Consequently the land is unclean, and I shall bring punishment for its error upon it, and the land will vomit its inhabitants out. And you yourselves must keep my statutes and my judicial decisions, and you must not do any of all these detestable things, whether a native or an alien resident who is residing as an alien in your midst. For all these detestable things the men of the land who were before you have done, so that the land is unclean. Then the land will not vomit you out for your defiling it the same the same way as it will certainly vomit the nations out who were before you. In case anyone does any of all these detestable things, then the souls doing them must be cut off from among their people. And you must keep your obligation to me not to carry on any of the detestable customs that have been carried on before you, that you may not make yourselves unclean by them. I am Jehovah your Lord.'" 19 And God spoke further to Moses, saying -- "Speak to the entire assembly of the sons of Israel, and you must say to them, 'You should prove yourselves holy, because I Jehovah your Lord am holy. "'You should fear each one his mother and his father, and my sabbaths you should keep. I am Jehovah your God. Do not turn yourselves to valueless gods, and you must not make molten gods for yourselves. I am Jehovah your God. "'Now in case you should sacrifice a communion sacrifice to God, you should sacrifice it to gain approval for yourselves. On the day of your sacrifice, and directly the next day it should be eaten, but what
is left over till the 3rd day should be burned in the fire. If, though, it should at all be eaten on the 3rd day, it is a foul thing. It will not be accepted with approval. And the one eating it will answer for his error, because he has profaned a holy thing of God-- and that soul (person) must be cut off from his people. "'And when you people reap the harvest of your land, you must not reap the edge of your field completely, and the gleaning (collecting bits by bits) of your harvest you must not pick up. Also, you must not gather the leftovers of your vineyard, and you must not pick up the scattered grapes of your vineyard. For the afflicted (distressed, troubled) one and the alien resident should leave them. I am Jehovah your Lord. "'You people must not steal, and you must not deceive, and you must not deal falsely (dishonestly) anyone with his associate. And you must not swear in my name to a lie, so that you do profane the name of your God. I am Jehovah. You must not defraud (cheat, swindle, deceive) your fellow, and you must not rob. The wages of a hired laborer should not stay all night with you until morning. '"'You must not call down evil upon a deaf man, and before a blind man you must not put an obstacle -- and you must be in fear of your God, I am Jehovah. "'You people must not do injustice in the judgment. You must not treat the lowly with partiality, and you must not prefer the person of a great one. With justice you should judge your associate. "'You must not go around among your people for the sake of slandering (make false damaging statement). You must not stand up against your fellow's blood (relative). I am God. "'You must not hate your brother in your heart. You should by all means reprove (reprimand) your associate, that you may not bear sin along with him. "'You must not take vengeance nor have a grudge against the sons of your people -- and you must love your fellow as yourself. I am God. "'You people should keep my statutes. You must not interbreed your domestic animals of 2 sorts. You must not sow your field with seeds of 2 sorts, and you must not put upon yourself -- a garment of 2 sorts of thread mixed together. "'Now in case a man lies down with a woman and has an emission of semen (se*) when she is a maidservant designated for another man, and she has not in any way been redeemed nor has freedom been given to her, punishment should take place. They should not be put to death, because she was not set free. And he must bring his guilt offering to God to the entrance of the tent of meeting, a ram of guilt offering. And the priest must make atonement for him with the ram of the guilt offering before God for his sin that he committed -- and his sin that he committed must be forgiven (for him). "And in case you people come into the land, and you must plant any tree for food, you must also consider its fruitage impure as its "foreskin". For 3 years it will continue uncircumcised for you. It should not be eaten. But in the 4th year all its fruit will become a holy thing of festal exultation (happiness) to God. And in the 5th year you may eat its fruit in order to add its produce to yourselves. I am Jehovah your God. "'You must eat nothing along with blood.
"'You must not look for omens, and you must not practice magic. "'You must not cut your sidelocks (sideburns) short around, and you must not destroy the extremity of your beard. "'And you must not make cuts in your flesh for a deceased soul (person), and you must not put tattoo marking upon yourselves. I am God. "'Do not profane your daughter by making her a prostitute, in order that the land may not commit prostitution and the land actually be filled with loose morals. "'My sabbaths you should keep, and you should stand in awe of my sanctuary. I am God. "'Do not turn yourselves to the spirit mediums, and do not consult professional foretellers of events, so as to become unclean by them. I am Jehovah your God. "'Before gray hair you should rise up, and you must show consideration for the person of an old man, and you must be in fear of your God. I am Jehovah. "'And in case an alien resident resides with you as an alien in your land, you must not mistreat him. The alien resident who resides as an alien with you should become to you like a native or yours -- and you must love him as yourself, for you became alien residents in the land of Egypt. I am God your Lord. "'You must not commit injustice in judging, in measuring, in weighing or in measuring liquids. You should prove to have accurate scales, accurate weights, an accurate ephah (22 liters) and an accurate hin (approx. 3.67 liter). Jehovah your God I am, who have brought you out of the land of Egypt. So you must keep all my statutes and all my judicial decisions, and you must do them. I am God."' 20 And God went on speaking to Moses, saying -- "You are to say the sons of Israel, 'Any man of the sons of Israel, and any alien resident who resides as an alien in Israel, who gives any of his offspring to Molech, should be put to death without fail. The people of the land should pelt him to death with stones. As for me, I shall set my face against that man, and I will cut him off from among his people, because he has given some of his offspring to Molech for the purpose of defiling my holy place, and to profane my holy name. And if the people of the land should deliberately hide their eyes from that man when he gives any of his offspring to Molech by not putting him to death, then I, for my part, will certainly fix my face against that man and his family, and I shall indeed cut him and all those who have immoral interc*urse along with him in having immoral interc*urse with Molech off from among their people. "'As for the soul (person) who turns himself to the spirit mediums and the professional foretellers of events so as to have immoral interc*urse with them. I shall certainly set my face against that soul and cut him off from among his people. "'And you must sanctify yourselves and prove yourselves holy, because I am Jehovah your God. And you must keep my statutes and do them. I am Jehovah who is sanctifying (purifying) you. "'In case there should be any man who calls down evil upon his father and mother,
he should be put to death without fail. It is his father and his mother upon whom he has called down evil. His own blood is upon him. "'Now a man who commits adultery with another man's wife is one who commits adultery with the wife of his fellowman. He should be put to death without fail, the adulterer and the adulteress as well. And a man who lies down with his father's wife has laid bare the nakedness of of his father. Both of them should be put to death without fail. Their own blood is upon them. And where a man lies down with his daughter-in law, both of them should be put to death without fail. They committed a violation of what is natural. Their own blood is upon them. "'And when a man lies down with a male the same as one lies down with a woman, both of them done a detestable thing. They should be put to death without fail. Their own blood is upon them. "'And where a man takes a woman and her mother, it is loose conduct. They should burn him and them in the fire, in order that loose conduct may not continue in your midst. "'And where a man give his seminal emission (se*) to a beast (animal), he should be put to death without fail, and you should kill the beast (animal). And where a woman approaches any beast (animal) to have a connection (se*, relation) with it, you must kill the woman and the beast. They should be put to death without fail. Their own blood is upon them. "'And where a man takes his sister, the daughter of his father or the daughter of mother, and he does see her nakedness, and she herself sees his nakedness, it is shame. So they must be cut off before the eyes of the sons of their people. It is the nakedness of his sister that he has laid bare. He should answer for his error. "'And where a man lies down with a menstruating woman and does lay bare her nakedness, he has exposed her source, and she herself has laid bare the source of her blood. So both of them must be cut off from among their people. "'And the nakedness of your mother's sister and your father's sister (your aunts) you must not lay bare, because it is his blood relation that one has exposed. They should answer for their error. And a man who lies down with his uncle's wife has laid bare the nakedness of his uncle. They should answer for their sin. They should die childless. And where a man takes his brother's wife, it is something abhorrent (detestable, loathsome). It is the nakedness of his brother that he has laid bare. They should become childless. "'And you people must keep all my statutes and all my judicial decisions and do them, that the land to which I am bringing you to dwell in it may not vomit you out. And you must not walk (live, obey) in the statutes (regulation) of the nations whom I am sending you out from before you, because they have done all these things and I abhor (detest, hate, loathe) them. Hence I said to you--"You, for your part, will take possession of their ground, and I, for my part, shall give it to you to take possession of it, a land flowing with milk and honey. Jehovah your Lord I am, who have divided you off from the peoples." And you must make distinction between the clean beast and the unclean and between the unclean fowl and the clean--and you must not make your souls loathsome with the beast and the fowl and anything that moves
on the ground that I have divided off you in declaring them unclean. And you must prove yourselves holy to me, because I Jehovah am holy, and I am proceeding to divide you off from the peoples to become mine. "'And as for a man or woman in whom there proves to be a mediumistic spirit or spirit of prediction, they should be put to death without fail. They should pelt them to death with stones. Their own blood is upon them.'" 21 And God went on to say to Moses -- "Talk to the priests, Aaron's sons, and you must say to them, 'For a deceased soul no one may defile (ceremonially unclean, degrade, corrupt) himself among his people. But for a blood relation of his who is close to him, for his mother and father and for his son and daughter and for his brother and sister, a virgin who is close to him, who has not become a man's, for her he may defile himself. He may not defile himself for a woman possessed by an owner among his people so as to make himself profane. They should not produce baldness upon their heads, and the extremity of their beard they should not shave, and on their flesh they should not make incision. They should prove themselves holy to their God, and they should not profane the name of their God, because they are those presenting God's offering made by fire, the bread of their God, and they must prove themselves holy. A prostitute or a violated woman they should not take -- and a woman divorced from her husband they should not take, because he is holy to his God. So you must sanctify him, because he is one presenting the bread of your God. He should prove to be holy to you, because I Jehovah, who am sanctifying you, am holy. "'Now in case the daughter of a priest should make herself profane by committing prostitution, it is her father that she is profaning. She should be burned in the fire. "'And as for the high priest of his brothers upon whose head the anointing oil would be poured and whose hand was filled with power to wear the garments, he should not let his head go ungroomed, and he should not tear his garments. And he should not come to any dead soul. For his father and his mother he may not defile himself. He should also not go out from the sanctuary of his God, because the sign of dedication, the anointing oil of his God, is upon him. I am Jehovah. "'And for his part, he should take a woman in her virginity. As for for a widow or a divorced woman and one violated, a prostitute, none of these may he take, but he should take a virgin from his people as a wife. And he should not profane his seed among his people, because I am God who is sanctifying him'" And God continued to speak to Moses, saying --"Speak to Aaron, saying, 'No man of your seed throughout their generations in whom there proves to be a defect may come near to present the bread of his God. In case there is any man in whom there is a defect, he may not come near -- a man blind or lame or with his nose slit or with one member too long, or a man in whom there proves to be a fracture of the foot or a fracture of the hand or hunchback or thin or diseased
in his eyes or scabby or having ringworms or having his testicles broken. Any man of the seed (offspring) of Aaron the priest in whom there is a defect may not approach to present God's offerings made by fire. There is a defect in him. He may not approach to present the bread of his God. He may eat the bread of his God from the most holy things and from the holy things. However, he may not come in near the curtain, and he may not approach the altar, because there is a defect in him -- and he should not profane my sanctuary, for I am God who is sanctifying them.'" Accordingly Moses spoke to Aaron and his sons and all the sons of Israel. 22 And God spoke further to Moses, saying --"Speak to Aaron and his sons, that they may keep themselves separate from the holy things of the sons of Israel and not profane my holy name in the things they are sanctifying (purifying) to me. I am Jehovah. Say to them, 'Throughout your generations any man of all your offspring who comes near to the holy things, which the sons of Israel wil l sanctify to God, while his uncleanness is upon him, that person must be cut off from before me. I am God. No man of Aaron's offspring when he is leprous or has a running discharge may eat of the holy things 1 until he becomes clean, neither he who touches anyone unclean by a deceased soul or a man from whom there goes out a seminal emission, nor a man who touches any swarming thing that is unclean for him, or touches a man who is unclean for him as respects any uncleanness of his. The soul who touches any such must be unclean until the evening and may not eat any of the holy things, but he must bathe his flesh in water. When the sun has set, he must also be clean, and afterward he may eat some of the holy things, because it is his bread. He should also not eat any body already dead or anything torn by wild animals so as to become unclean by it. I am God. And they must keep their obligation to me, that they may not carry sin because of it and have to die for it because they were profaning it. I am God who is sanctifying them. And no stranger at all may eat anything holy. No settler with a priest nor a hired laborer may eat anything holy. But in case a priest should purchase a soul, as a purchase with his money, he as such may share in eating it. As for slaves born in his house, they as such may share in eating his bread. In case the daughter of a priest should become a man's who is a stranger, she as such may not eat of the contribution of the holy things. But in case the daughter of a priest should become a widow or divorced when she has no offspring, and she must return to her father's house as in her youth, she may eat some of her father's bread, but no stranger at all may feed on it. Now in case a man eats a holy thing by mistake, he must then add the 5th of it to it and must give the holy thing to the priest. So they should not profane the holy things of the sons of Israel, which they may contribute to God, and actually cause them to bear the punishment of guiltiness because of their eating their holy things--for I am God who is sanctifying them.'" And God continued to speak to Moses, saying --"Speak to Aaron and his sons and all the sons of Israel, and
you must say to them, 'As for any man of the house of Israel or some alient resident in Israel who presents his offering, for any their vows or for any of their voluntary offerings, which they may present to God for a burnt offering, to gain approval for you it must be sound, a male among the herd, among the young rams or among the goats. Anything in which there is a defect you must not present, because it will not serve to gain approval for you. "'And in case a man should present a communion sacrifice to God in order to pay a vow or as a voluntary offering, it should prove to be a sound one among the herd or the flock, in order to gain approval. No defect at all should prove be in it. No case of blindness or fracture or having a cut or wart or scabbiness or ringworm, none of these must you present to God, and no offering made by fire from them must you put upon the altar for God. As for a bull or a sheep having a member too long or too short, you may nake it a voluntary offering -- but for a vow it will not be accepted with approval. But one having the testicles squeezed or crushed or pulled off or cut off you must not present ot God, and in your land you should not render them up. And any of all these from the hand of a foreigner you not present as the bread of your God, because their corruption is in them. There is defect in them. They will not be accepted with approval of you.'" And God spoke further to Moses, saying -- "Should a bull or a young ram or a goat be born then it must continue under its mother 7 days, but from the 8th day and forward it will be accepted with approval as an offering, an offering made by fire to God. As for a bull and a sheep you must not slaughter it and its young one on the one day. "And in case you should sacrifice a thanksgiving sacrifice to God, you should be eaten. You msut not leave any of it until morning. I am God. "And you must keep my commandments and do them. I am God. And you must not profane my holy name, and I must be sanctified in the midst of the sons of Israel. I am the One bringing you out of the land of Egypt to prove myself God to you. I am God." 23 And God went on speaking to Moses, saying --"Speak to the sons of Israel, and you must say to them, 'The seasonal festivals of God that you should proclaim are holy conventions. These are my seasonal festivals-- "'6 days may work be done, but on the 7th day is a sabbath of complete rest, a holy convention. You may do no sort of work. It is a sabbath to God in all places where you dwell. "'These are the seasonal festivals of God, holy conventions, which you should proclaim at their appointed times -- In the 1st month, on the 14th day of the month, between the 2 evenings is the passover to God. "'And on the 15th day of this month is the festival of unfermented cakes to God. 7 days you should eat unfermented cakes. On the 1st day you will have a holy convention occur. No sort of laborious
work may you do. But you must present an offering made by fire to God 7 days. On the 7th day there will be a holy convention. No sort of laborious work may you do.'" And God continued to speak to Moses, saying --"Speak to the sons of that Israel, and you must say to them, 'When you eventually come into the land that I am giving you, and you have reaped its harvest, you must also bring a sheaf of the 1stfruits of your harvest to the priest. And he must wave the sheaf to and fro before God to gain approval for you. Directly the day after the sabbath the priest should wave it to and fro. And on the day of your having the sheaf waved to and fro you must render up a sound young ram, in its 1st year, for a burnt offering to God -- and as its grain offering 2/10 of an epah (approx. 4.4 liters) of fine flour moistened with oil, as an offering made by fire to God, a restful odor -- and its drink offering a 4th of a hin (1/4 hin = 0.92 liter, 1 hin = 3.67 liter) of wine. You must eat no bread nor roasted grain nor new grain until this very day, until your bringing the offering of your God. It is a statute to time indefinite for your generations in all places where you dwell. "'And you must count for yourselves from the day after the sabbath, from the day of your bringing the sheaf of the wave offering, 7 sabbaths. They should prove to be complete. To the day after the 7th sabbath you should count 50 days, and you must present a new grain offering to God. Out of your dwelling places you should bring 2 loaves as wave offering. Of two 10th of ephah (2/10 of 22 liter = 4.4 liter) of fine flour they should prove to be. They should be baked leavened, as 1st ripe fruits to God. And you must present along with the loaves 7 sound male lambs, each 1 year old, and 1 young bull, and 2 rams. They should serve as a burnt offering to God along with their grain offering and their drink offerings as an offering made by fire, of restful odor to God. You must render up 1 of the young goats as a sin offering and 2 male lambs, each 1 year old, and young bull and 2 rams. They should serve as a burnt offering to God along with their grain offering and their drink offering made by fire, of a restful odor to God. And you must render up 1 kid of the goats as sin offering and 2 males lambs, each a year old, as a communion sacrifice. And the priest must wave them to and fro along with the loaves of the 1st ripe fruits, as a wave offering before God, along with the 2 male lambs. They should serve as something holy to God for the priest. And you must make a proclamation on this very day -- there will be a holy convention for yourselves. No sort of laborious work may you do. It is a statute to time indefinite in all your dwelling places for your generations. "'And when you people reap the harvest of your land, you must not do completely the edge of your field when you are reaping, and the gleaning of your harvest you must not pick up. You should leave them for the afflicted (troubled) one and the alien resident. I am Jehovah your God.'" And God went on speaking to Moses, saying -- "Speak to the sons of Israel saying, 'In the 7th month on the 1st of the month, there should occur for you a complete rest, a memorial by by the trumpet blast, a holy convention. No sort of laborious work may you do, and you must present an offering made by fire to God.'" And God spoke further to Moses, saying -- "However, on the 10th of this 7th month is the day of atonement. A holy convention should take place for you, and you must afflict (trouble) your souls and present an
offering made by fire to God. And you must do no sort of work on this very day, because it is a day of atonement to make atonement for you before God your Lord -- because every soul that will not be afflicted on this very day must be cut off from his people. As for any soul that will do any sort of work on this very day, I must destroy that soul from among his people. You must do no sort of work. It is a statute to time indefinite for your generations in all places where you dwell. It is a sabbath of complete rest for you, and you must afflict your souls on the 9th of the month in the evening. From evening to evening you should observe your sabbath." And God continued to speak to Moses, saying -- "Speak to the sons of Israel, saying, 'On the 15th day on this 7th month is the festival of booths for 7 days to God. On the 1st day is a holy convention. No sort of laborious work may you do. 7 days you should present an offering made by fire to God. On the 8th day there should occur a holy convention for you, and you must present an offering made by fire to God. It is a solemn assembly. No sort of laborious work may you do. "'These are the seasonal festivals of God that you should proclaim as holy conventions, for presenting an offering made by fire to God -- the burnt offering and the grain offering of the sacrifice and the drink offering according to the daily schedule, besides the sabbath of God and besides your gifts and besides all your vow offerings and besides all your voluntary offerings, which you should give to God. However, on the 15th day of the 7th month, when you have gathered the produce of the land, you should celebrate the festival of God 7 days. On the 1st day is a complete rest and on the 8th day is a complete rest. And you must take for yourselves on the 1st day the fruit of splendid trees, the fronds (large leaf) of palm trees and the boughs of branchy trees and poplars of the torrent valley, and you must rejoice before God your Lord 7 days. And you must celebrate it as a festival to God 7 days in the year. As a statute to time indefinite during your generations, you should celebrate it in the 7th month. It is in the booths you should dwell 7 days. All the natives in Israel should dwell in the booths, in order that your generations may know that it was in the booths that I made the sons of Israel to dwell when I was bringing them out of the land of Egypt. I am Jehovah your Lord.'" Accordingly Moses spoke of the seasonal festivals of God to the sons of Israel. 24 And God proceeded to speak to Moses, saying --"Command the sons of Israel that they get for you pure, beaten olive oil for the luminary, to light up the lamp constantly. Outside the curtain of the Testimony in the tent of meeting Aaron should set it in order from evening to morning before God constantly. It is a statute to time indefinite during your generations. Upon the lampstand of pure gold he should set the lamps in order before God constantly. "And you must take fine flour and bake it up into 12 ring-shaped cakes. 2/10th of an ephah (4.4 liter) should go to each
ring shaped cake. And you must place them in 2 sets of layers, 6 to the layer set, upon the table of pure gold before God. And you must put pure frankincense upon each layer set, and it must serve as the bread for a remembrancer, an offering made by fire to God. On one sabbath day after another he should set it in order before God constantly. It is a covenant to time indefinite with the sons of Israel. And It must become Aaron's and his sons' and they must eat it in a holy place, because it is something most holy for him from God's offering made by fire, as a regulation to time indefinite. Now a son of an Israelite woman, who, however, was the son of an Egyptian man, went out to the midst of the sons of the Israel, and the son of the Israelitess and the Israelite man began to struggle with each other in the camp. And the son of Israelite woman began to abuse the Name, and to call down evil upon it. So they brought him to Moses. Incidentally, his mother's name was Shelomith daughter of Dibri of the tribe of Dan. Then they committed him into custody till there should be distinct declaration to them according to the saying of Jehovah. And God proceeded to speak to Moses, saying -- "Bring forth the one who called down evil to the outside of the camp -- and all those who heard him must lay their hands upon his head, and the entire assembly must pelt him with stones. And you should speak to the sons of Israel, saying, 'In case any man calls down evil upon his God, he must then answer for his sin. So the abuser of God's name should be put to death without fail. The entire assembly should without fail pelt him with stones. The alien resident the same as the native should be put to death for his abusing the Name. "'And in case a man strikes any soul of mankind fatally, he should be put to death without fail. And the fatal striker of the soul of a domestic animal should make compensation for it, soul for soul. And in case a man should cause a defect in his associate, then just as he has done, so it should be done to him. Fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, the same sort of defect he may cause in the man, that is what should be caused in him. And the fatal striker of a beast should make compensation for it, but the fatal striker of man should be put to death. "'One judicial decision should hold good for you. The alien resident should prove to be the same as native, because I am Jehovah your Lord.'" After that Moses spoke to the sons of Israel, and they brought forth the one who had called down evil to the outside of the camp, and they pelted him with stones. Thus the sons of Israel did just as God had commanded Moses. 25 And God spoke further to Moses in Mount Sinai, saying --"Speak to the sons of Israel, and you must say to them, "When you eventually come into the land I am giving you, then the land must observe a sabbath to God. 6 years you should sow your field with seed, and 6 years you should prune your vineyard, and you must gather land's produce. But in the 7th year there should occur a sabbath of complete rest for the land, a sabbath to God. Your field you must not sow with seed, and your vineyard
must not prune. The growth from spilled kernels of your harvest you must not reap, and the grapes of your unpruned vine you must not gather. There should occur a year of complete rest for the land. And the sabbath of the land must serve you people for food, for you and your slave man and slave girl, and your hired laborer and the settler with you, those who are residing as aliens with you, and for your domestic animal and for the wild animal that is your land. All its produce should serve for eating. "'And you must count for yourself 7 sabbaths of years, 7 times 7 years, and the days of the 7 sabbaths of years must amount to 49 years for you. And you must cause the horn of loud tone to sound in the 7th month on the 10th (day) of the month -- on the day of atonement you people should cause the horn to sound in all your land. And you must sanctify the 50th year and proclaim liberty in the land to all its inhabitants. It will become a Jubilee (anniversary celebration) for you, and you must return each one to his possession and you should return each one to his family. A Jubilee is what that 50th year will become for you. You must not sow seed nor reap the land's growth from spilled kernels nor gather the grapes of its unpruned vines. For it is a Jubilee. It should become something holy to you. From the field you may eat what the land produces. "'In this year of the Jubilee you should return each one to his possession. Now in case you should sell merchandise to your associate or buying from your associate's hand, do not do wrong one another. By the number of the years after the Jubilee you should buy from your associate -- by the number of the years of the crops he should sell to you. In proportion to the great number of years he should increase its purchase value, and in proportion to the fewness of years he should reduce its purchase value, because the number of the crops is what he is selling to you. And you must not wrong anyone his associate, and you must be in fear of your God, because I am Jehovah your Lord. So you must carry out my statutes and you should keep my judicial decisions and you must carry them out. Then you will certainly dwell on the land in security. And the land will indeed give its fruitage, and you will certainly eat to satisfaction and dwell in security on it. "'But in case you should say--"What are we going to eat in the 7th year seeing that we may not sow seed or gather our crops?" in that case I shall certainly command my blessing for you in the 6th year, and it must yield its crop for 3 years. And you must sow seed the 8th year and you must eat from the old crop until the 9th year. Until the coming of its crop you will eat the old. "'So the land should not be sold in perpetuity, (restriction or state of being lasting forever), because the land is mine. For you are alien residents and settlers from my standpoint. And in all the land of your possession you should grant to the land the right of buying back. "'In case your brother grows poor and has to sell some of his possession, a repurchaser closely related to him must also come and buy back what his brother sold. And in case anyone proves to have no repurchaser and his own hand does make gain and he does find enough for its repurchase, he must also calculate the years from when he sold it and
he must return what money remains over to the man to whom he made the sale, and he must return to his possession. "'But if his hand does not find enough to give back to him, what he sold must also continue in the hand of its purchaser until the Jubilee year -- and it must go out in the Jubilee, and he must return to his possession. "'Now in case a man should sell a dwelling house in a walled city, his right of repurchase must also continue till the year from the time of his sale finishes out -- his right of repurchase should continue a whole year. But if it should not be bought back before the complete year has come to the full for him, the house that is in the city that has wall must also stand in perpetuity as the property of its purchaser during his generations. It should not go out in the Jubilee. However, the houses of settlements that have no wall about them should account as part of the field of the country. Right of repurchase should continue for it, and in the Jubilee it should go out. "'As for cities of the Levites with the houses of the cities of their possession, the right of repurchase should continue to time indefinite for the Levites. And where the property of the Levites is not bought back, the house sold in the city in his possession must also go out in the Jubilee -- because the houses of the cities of the Levites are their possession in the midst of the sons of Israel. Moreover, the field of pasture ground of their cities may not be sold, because it is a possession to time indefinite for them. "'And in case your brother grows poor and so he is financially weak alongside you, you must also sustain him. As an alien resident and a settler, he must keep alive with you. Do not take interest and usury from him, but you must be in fear of your God -- and your brother must keep alive with you. You must not give him your money on interest, and you must not give your food out on usury. I am Jehovah your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt to give you the land of Canaan, to prove myself your God. "'And in case your brother grow poor alongside you and he has to sell himself to you, you must not use him as a worker in slavish service. He should prove to be with you like a hired laborer, like a settler. He should serve with you till the Jubilee year. And he must go out from you, he and his sons with him and he must return to his family, and he should return to the possession of his forefathers. For they are my slaves whom I brought out of the land of Egypt. They must not sell themselves the way a slave is sold. You must not tread (step) down upon him with tyranny (cruel oppressing government, or rule) and you must be in fear of your God. As for your slave man and your slave girl who become yours from the nations that are round about you people, from them you may buy a slave man and a slave girl. And also from the sons of the settlers who are residing as aliens with you, from them you may buy, and from their families that are with you whom they had born to them in your land--and they must become your possession. You you must pass them on as an inheritance to your sons after you to inherit as a possession to time indefinite. And you must pass them on as inheritance to your sons after you to inherit as a possession to time indefinite. You may use them as workers, but upon your brohers the sons of Israel. And you must workers, but upon your brothers the sons of Israel, you must not tread, the one upon the other with tyranny.
"'But in case the hand of the alien resident or the settler with you becomes wealthy, and your brother has become poor alongside him and must sell himself to the alien resident or the settler with you, or to a member of the family of the alien resident, after he has sold himself, the right of repurchase will continue in his case. One of his brothers may buy him back. Or his uncle or the son of his uncle may buy him back, or any blood relative of his flesh, one of his family, may buy him back. "'Or if his own hand has become wealthy, he must also buy him back. And he must reckon (work out) with his purchaser from the year he sold himself to him till the Jubilee year, and the money of his sale must correspond with the number of years. The way workdays of a hired worker are reckoned he should continue with him. If there are yet many years, he should in proportion to them pay his repurchase price over from the money of his purchase. But if only a few remain of the years until the Jubilee year, he must then make a calculation for himself. In proportion to the years of his he should pay over his repurchase price. He should continue with him like a hired laborer from year to year. He may not tread him down with tyranny before your eyes. However, if he cannot buy himself back on these terms, he must then go out in the year of Jubilee, he and his sons with him. "'For to me the sons of Israel are slaves. They are my slaves whom I brought out of the land of Egypt. I am Jehovah your Lord. 26 "'You must not make valueless idols for yourselves, and you must not set up a carved image or sacred pillar for yourselves, and you must not put a stone as a showpiece in your land to bow down toward it, for I am God your Lord. You should keep my sabbaths and stand in awe of my sanctuary. I am God. "'If you continue walking in my statutes and keeping my commandments and you do carry them out, I shall also certainly give your showers of rain at their proper time, and the land will indeed give its yield, and the tree of the field will give its fruit. And your threshing will certainly reach to your grape gathering, and the grape gathering will reach to the sowing of seed-- and you will indeed eat your bread to satisfaction and dwell in security in your land. And I will put peace in the land, and you will indeed lie down, with no one making you tremble -- and I will make injurious wild beast cease out of the land, and a sword will not pass through your land. And you will certainly chase your enemies, and they will indeed fall before you by the sword. And 5 of you will certainly chase a 100, and a 100 of you will chase 10,000, and your enemies will indeed fall before you by the sword. "'And I will turn myself to you and make you fruitful and multiply you, and I will carry out my covenant with you. And you will certainly eat the old of the proceeding year, and you will bring out the old ahead of the new. And I shall certainly put my tabernacle in the midst of you, and my soul will not abhor (hate, loathe) you. I shall indeed walk in the midst of you and prove myself your God, and you, on your part, will prove yourselves
my people. I am God your Lord, who brought you out of the land of Egypt from acting as slaves to them, and I proceeded to break the bars of your yoke and make you walk upright and erect. "'However, if you will not listen to me nor do all these commandments, and if you will reject my statutes, and if your souls abhor my judicial decisions so as not to do all my commandments to the extent of your violating my covenant-- then I, for my part, shall do the following to you, and in punishment I shall certainly bring upon you disturbance with tuberculosis (name of disease) and burning fever causing the eyes to fail and making the soul pine (loose health) away. And you shall simply sow your seed for nothing, as your enemies will certainly eat it up. And I shall indeed set my face against you, and you will certainly be defeated before your enemies-- and those who hate you will just tread down upon you (step all over you) and you will actually flee when no one is pursuing you. "'If, though, despite these things, you will not listen to me, I shall then have to chastise (punish. scold, reprimand, admonish) you 7 times as much for your sins. And I shall have to break the pride of your strength and make your heavens like iron and your earth like copper. And your power will simply be expended (spent) for nothing, as your earth will not give its yield (harvest), and the tree of the earth will not give its fruit. "'But if you keep walking in opposition to me and not wishing to listen to me, I shall then have to inflict 7 time more blows upon you according to your sins. And I will send the wild beasts of the field among you, and they will certainly bereave you of children and cut off your domestic animals and reduce the number of you, and your roads will actually be desolated (ruined). "'Nevertheless, if with these things you do not let yourselves be corrected by me and you just have to walk in opposition to me, I yes, I shall then have to walk in opposition to you -- and I, even I, shall have to strike you 7 times for your sins. And I shall certainly bring upon you a sword wreaking vengeance for the covenant -- and you will indeed gather yourselves into yourselves, into your cities, and I shall certainly send pestilence into the midst of you, and you must be given into the hand of an enemy. When I have broken for you the rods around which ring shaped loaves are suspended, 10 women will then actually bake your bread in but one oven and give back your bread by weight -- and you must eat but you will not be satisfied. "'If, however, with this you will not listen to me and you just must walk in opposition to me, I shall then have to walk in heated opposition to you, and I, yes, I, will have to chastise you 7 times for your sins. So you will have to eat the flesh of your sons and your daughters, and I will certainly annihilate your sacred high places and cut off your incense stands, and lay your own carcasses upon the carcasses of your dungy idols--and my soul will simply abhor you. And I shall indeed give your cities to the sword and lay your sanctuaries desolate, and I shall not smell your restful odors. And I, for my part, will lay the land desolate, and
your enemies who are dwelling in it will simply stare in amazement over it. And you I shall scatter among the nations, and I will unsheathe a sword after you -- and your land must become a desolation, and your cities will become a desolate ruin. "'At that time the land will pay off its sabbaths all the days of its lying desolated, while you are in the land of your enemies. At that time the land will keep sabbath, as it must repay its sabbaths. All the days of its lying desolated it will keep sabbath, for the reason that it did not keep sabbath during your sabbaths when you were dwelling upon it. "'As for those remaining among you, I shall certainly bring timidity into their hearts in the lands of their enemies -- and the sound of a leaf driven about will indeed chase them away, and they will actually flee as in flight from a sword and fall without anyone chasing. And they will certainly stumble against one another as if from before a sword without anyone chasing, and for you there will prove to be no ability to stand in resistance before your enemies. And you must perish among the nations, and the land of your enemies must eat you up. And as for those remaining among you, they will rot away because of their error in the lands of your enemies. Yes, even because of the errors of their fathers, with them they will rot away. And they will certainly confess their own error and the error of their fathers in their unfaithfulness when they behaved unfaithfully toward me, yes, even when they walked in opposition to me. Yet I, for my part, proceeded to walk in opposition to them, and I had to bring them into the land of their enemies. "'Perhaps at that time their uncircumcised heart will be humbled, and at that time they will pay off their error. And I shall indeed remember my covenant with Jacob -- and even my covenant with Isaac and even my covenant with Abraham I will remember, and the land I will remember. All the while the land was left abandoned by them and was paying off its sabbaths while it was lying desolated without them and they themselves were paying for their error, because, even because, they had rejected my judicial decisions, and their souls had abhorred my statute. And yet for all this, while they continue in the land of their enemies, I shall certainly not reject them nor abhor them so as to exterminate them, to violate my covenant with them -- for I am Jehovah their God. And I will remember in their behalf the covenant of the ancestors whom I brought forth out of the land of Egypt under the eyes of the nations, in order to prove myself their God. I am Jehovah.'" These are the regulations and the judicial decisions and the laws that God set between himself and the sons of Israel in Mount Sinai by means of Moses. 27 And God continued to speak to Moses, saying --"Speak to the sons of Israel, and you must say to them, 'In case a man makes a special vow offering of souls to God according to the estimated value, and the estimated value has to be of a male from 20 years old to 60 years old, the estimated value must then become 50 shekels (money) of silver by the shekel of the holy place. But if it is a female, the estimated value must then become
30 shekels (dollars). If the age is from 5 years old to 20 years old, the estimated value of the male then must become is 20 shekels and for the female 10 shekels. And if the age is from 1 month to 5 years old, the estimated value of the male then becomes 5 shekels of silver, and for the female 3 shekels of silver. "'Now if the age is from 60 years old upward, if it is a male, the estimated value must then become 15 shekels, and for the female 10 shekels. But if he has become too poor for estimated value, he must then stand the person before the priest, and the priest must put a valuation upon him. According to what the vower can afford, the priest will put a valuation upon him. "'And if it is a beast such as one presents in offering to God, everything of what he may give to God will become something holy. He may not replace it, and he may not exchange it with good for bad or with bad for good. But if he should exchange it at all with beast for beast, it itself must then become and what is exchanged for it should become something holy. And if it is any unclean beast such as one may not present in offering to God, he must then stand the beast before the priest. And the priest must put a valuation upon it whether it is good or bad. According to the value estimated by the priest, so it should become. But if he wants to buy it back at all, he must then give a 5th of it in addition to the estimated value. "'Now in case a man should sanctify his house as something holy to God, the priest must then make a valuation of it whether it is good or bad. According to what valuation the priest makes of it, so much it should cost. But if the sanctifier wants to buy his house back, he must then give a 5th of the money of the estimated value in addition to it - and it must become his. "'And if it is some of the field of his possession that a man would sanctify to God, the value must then be estimated in proportion to its seed -- if a homer (approx. 100 gallons) of barley seed, then at 50 shekels of silver. If he should sanctify his field from the year of Jubilee on, it should cost according to the estimated value. And if it is after the Jubilee that he sanctifies his field, the priest must then calculate for him the price in proportion to the years that are left over until the next year of Jubilee, and a deduction should be made from the estimated value. But if the sanctifier of it would at all buy the field back, he must then give a 5th of the money of the estimated value in addition to it, and it must stand fast as his. Now if he should not buy the field back but if the field is sold to another man, it may not be bought back again. And the field when it goes out in the Jubilee must become something holy to God, as a field that is devoted. The possession of it will become the priest's. "'And if he sanctifies to God a field purchased by him that is no part of the field of his possession, the priest must then calculate for him the amount of the valuation up till the year of Jubilee, and he must give the estimated value on that day. It is something holy to God. In the year of Jubilee the field will return to the one from whom he bought it, to the one to whom the possession of the land belongs.
"'Now every value should be estimated in the shekel of the holy place. The shekel should amount to 20 gerahs (1 gerah is 1/20 of a shekel). "'Only the 1stborn among the beasts, which is born as the 1stborn for God, no man should sanctify it. Whether bull or sheep, it belongs to God. And if it is among the unclean beasts and the he must redeem it according to the estimated value, he must then give a 5th to it in addition to it. But if it should not be bought back, it must then be sold according to the estimated value. "'Only no sort of devoted thing that a man might devote to God for destruction out of all that is his, whether from mankind or beasts or from the field of his possession, may be sold, and no sort of devoted thing may be bought back. It is something most holy to God. No devoted person who might be devoted to destruction from among mankind may be redeemed. He should be put to death without fail. "'And every 10th part of the land, out of the seed of the land and the fruit of the tree, belongs to God. And if a man wants to buy any of his 10th part back at all, he should give a 5th to it in addition to it. As for every 10th part of the herd and flock, everything that passes under the crook, the 10th head should become something holy to God. He should not examine whether it is good or bad, neither should he exchange it. But if he would exchange it at all, it itself must then become and what is exchanged for it should become something holy. It may not be bought back.'" These are the commandments that God gave Moses as commands to the sons of Israel in Mount Sinai.
NUMBERS
1 And God proceeded to speak to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the tent of meeting on the 1st day of the 2nd month in the 2nd year of their coming out of the land of Egypt, and he said--"Take the sum of the whole assembly of the sons of Israel according to their families, according to the house of their fathers, by the number of names, all the males, head by head of them, from 20 years old upward, everyone going out to the army in Israel. You should register them according to their armies, you and Aaron. "'And some men should be with you, one man to a tribe, each is a head to the house of his fathers. And these are the names of the men who will stand with you--of Reuben, Elizur the son of Shedeur; of Simeon, Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai; of Judah, Nahshon the son of Amminadab; of Issachar, Nethanel the son of Zuar; of Zebulun, Eliab the son of Helon;of the sons of Joseph of Ephraim, Elishama the son of Ammihud; of Manasseh, Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur; of Benjamin, Abidan the son of
Black Ink -- Bible Pages/Text
Blue Ink--Understand & Pray Numbers 1-36
Gideoni -- of Dan, Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai; of Asher, Pagiel the son of Ochran; of Gad, Eliasaph the sons of Deuel -- of Naphtali, Ahira the sons of Enan. These are the ones called of the assembly the chieftains of the tribes of their fathers. They are the heads of the 1000s of Israel. So Moses and Aaron took these men who had been designated by names. And they congregated all the assembly on the 1st day of the 2nd month, that they might have their descent (offspring) acknowledged as regards their families in the house of their fathers, by number of the names, from 20 years old and upward, head by head of them, just as God had commanded Moses -- and proceeded to register them in the wilderness of Sinai. And the sons of Reuben, Israel's 1stborn, their births according to their families in the house of their fathers, came to be by number of their names, head by head of them, all the males from 20 years old and upward, everyone going out of the army, those registered of them of the tribe of Reuben, 46,500. Of the sons of Simeon, their births according to their families in the house of their fathers, those registered ones of his by the number of names, head by head of them, all the males from 20 years old upward, everyone going out to the army, those registered of them of the tribe of Simeon were 59,300. Of the sons of Gad, their births according to their families in the house of their fathers by the number of names by from 20 years and upward, everyone going out to the army, those registered of them of the tribe of Gad were 45,650. Of the sons of Judah, their births according to their families in the house of their fathers by the number of names by from 20 years and upward, everyone going out to the army, those registered of them of the tribe of Judah were 74,600. Of the sons of Issachar, their births according to their families in the house of their fathers by the number of names by from 20 years and upward, everyone going out to the army, those registered of them of the tribe of Issachar were 54,400. Of sons of Zebulun, their births according to their families in the house of their fathers by the number of names by from 20 years and upward, everyone going out to the army, those registered of them of the tribe of Zebulun were 57,400. Of the sons of Joseph -- of the sons of Ephraim, their births according to their families in the house of their fathers by the number of names by from 20 years and upward, everyone going out to the army, those registered of them of the tribe of Ephraim were 40,500. Of the sons of Manasseh, their births according to their families in the house of their fathers by the number of names by from 20 years and upward, everyone going out to the army, those registered of them of the tribe of Manasseh were 32,200. Of the sons of Benjamin, their births according to their families in the house of their fathers by the number of names by from 20 years and upward
everyone going out to the army, those registered of them of the tribe of Benjamin were 35,400. Of the tribe of Dan, their births according to their families in the house of their fathers by the number of names by from 20 years and upward, everyone going out to the army, those registered of them of the tribe of Dan were 62,700. Of the sons of Asher, their births according to their families in the house of their fathers by the number of names by from 20 years and upward, everyone going out to the army, those registered of them of the tribe of Asher were 41,500. Of the sons of Naphtali, their births according to their families in the house of their fathers, those registered ones of his by the number of names from 20 years and older, everyone going out to the army, those registered of them of the tribe of Naphtali were 53,400 -- These are the ones registered, whom Moses registered, together with Aaron and the chieftains of Israel, 12 men. They represented one each house of his fathers. And all those registered of the sons of Israel according to the house of their fathers from 20 years old and upward, everyone going out to the army in Israel, came to be, yes all those registered came to be 603,550. However the Levites according to the tribe of their fathers did not get registered in among them. Accordingly God spoke to Moses, saying -- "Only the tribe of Levi you must not register, and the sum of them you must not take in among the sons of Israel. And you yourself appoint the Levites over the tabernacle of the Testimony and over all its utensils and over everything that belongs to it. They themselves will carry the tabernacle and all its utensils, and they themselves will minister at it -- and around the tabernacle they are to camp. And whenever the tabernacle is setting out, the Levites should take it down -- and when the tabernacle encamps, the Levites should set it up -- and any stranger coming near should be put to death. "And the sons of Israel must encamp each with reference to his camp, and each man by his 3-tribe division by their armies. And the Levites should encamp around the tabernacle of the Testimony, that no indignation (resentment, offense) may arise against the assembly of the sons of Israel -- and the Levites must keep the service due to the tabernacle of the testimony." And the sons of Israel proceeded to do according to all that God had commanded Moses. They did just so. 2 God now spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying -- "The sons of Israel should encamp, each man by his 3-tribe division, by the signs for the house of their fathers. Round about in front of the tent of meeting they should encamp. "And those camping eastward toward the sunrising will be the 3-tribe division of Judah in their armies, and the chieftain for the sons of Judah is Nashon the son of Amminadab. And his army and the ones registered of them are -- 74,600. And those camping alongside him will be the tribes of tribe of Issachar, and the chieftain for the sons of Issachar is Nethanel the son of
Zuar. And his army and his registered ones are 54,400. And the tribe of Zebulun -- and the chieftain for the sons of Zebulun is Eliab the son of Helon. And his army and his registered ones are 57,400. "All the registered ones of the camp of Judah are 186,400 in their armies. They should set out 1st. "The 3-tribe division of the camp of Reuben will be toward to the south in their armies, and the chieftain for the sons of Reuben is Elizur the son of Shedeur. All his army and his registered ones are 46,500. And those camping alongside him will be the tribe of Simeon, and the chieftain for the sons of Simeon is Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai. And his army and the ones registered of them are 59,300. And tribe of Gad, and the chieftain for the sons of Gad is Eliasaph the son of Reuel. And his army of and the ones registered are 45,650. "All the registered ones of the camp of Reuben are 151,450 in their armies. They should set out 2nd. "When the tent of meeting must set out, the camp of the Levites will be in the middle of the camps. "Just as they should encamp, so they should set out, each one at his place, according to their 3-tribe divisions. "The 3-tribe division of the camp of Ephraim in their armies toward the west, and the chieftain for the sons of Ephraim is Elishama the son of Ammihud. And his army and the ones registered of them are 40,500. And alongside him will be the tribe of Manasseh, and the chieftain for the sons of Manasseh is Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur. And his army and the ones registered of them are 32,200. And the tribe of Benjamin, and the chieftain for the sons of Benjamin is Abidan the son Gideoni. And his army and the ones registered of them are 35,400. "All the registered ones of the camp of Ephraim are 108,100 in their armies. They should set out 3rd. "The 3-tribe division of the camp of Dan will be toward the north in their armies, and chieftain for the sons of Dan is Ahiezer the son of Amminshaddai. And his army and the ones registered of them are 62,700. And the ones camping alongside him will be the tribe of Asher, and the chieftain for the sons of Asher is Pagiel the son of Ochran. And his army and the ones registered ones of them are 41,500. And the tribe of Naphtali -- and the chieftain of sons of Naphtali is Ahira the son of Enan. And his army and the ones registered ones are 53,400. "All the registered ones of the camp of Dan are 157,600. They should set out last -- according to their 3-tribe divisions." These were the registered ones of the sons of Israel according to the house of their fathers -- all the registered ones of the camps in their armies were 603,550.
But the Levites did not get registered in among the sons of Israel, just as God had commanded Moses. And the sons of Israel proceeded to do according to all that God had commanded Moses. That is the way they encamped in their 3-tribe divisions, and that is the way they set out, each one in his families with regard to the house of their fathers. 3 Now these were the generations of Aaron and Moses in the day that God spoke with Moses in Mount Sinai. And these were the names of Aaron's sons -- the 1stborn Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar. These were the names of Aarons' sons, the anointed priests whose hands had been filled with power to act as priests. However, Nadab and Abihu died before God when they offered illegitimate fire before God in the wilderness of Sinai -- and they did not come to have any sons. But Eleazar and Ithamar continued to act as priests along with Aaron their father. And God proceeded to speak to Moses, saying -- "Bring the tribe of Levi near, and you must stand them before Aaron the priest, and they must minister to him. And they must keep their obligation to him and their obligation to all the assembly before the tent of meeting in discharging the service of the tabernacle. And they must take care of all the utensils of the tent of meeting, even the obligation of the sons of Israel in discharging the service of tabernacle. And you must give the Levites to Aaron and his sons. They are given ones, given to him from the sons of Israel. And you should appoint Aaron and his sons, and they must take care of their priesthood -- and any stranger coming near should be put to death." And God continued to speak to Moses, saying -- "As for me, look! I do take the Levites from among the sons of Israel in place of all the 1stborn opening the womb of the sons of Israel-- and the Levites must become mine. For every 1stborn is mine. In the day that I struck every 1stborn in the land of Egypt I sanctified to myself every 1stborn in Israel from man to beast. They should become mine. I am God. And God spoke further to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, saying --"Register the sons of Levi according to the house of their fathers by their families. Every male from 1 month old and upward you should register. And Moses began to register them at the order of God, just as he had been commanded. And these came to be the sons of Levi by their names --Gershon and Kohath and Merari. Now these were the names of the sons of Gershon by their families-- Libni and Shimei. And the sons of Kohath by their families were Amram and Izhar, Hebron and Uzziel. And the sons of Merari by their families were Mahli and Mushi. These were the families of the Levites according to the house of their fathers.
Of Gershon there were the family of the Libnites and the family of the Shimeites. These were the families of the Gershonites. Their registered ones were by number of all males from a month and upward. Their registered ones were 7,500.
The families of Gershonites were behind the tabernacle. They were encamped to the west. And the chieftain of paternal house for the Gershonites were Eliasaph the son of Lael. And the obligation of the sons of Gershon in the tent of meeting was the tabernacle and the tent, its covering and the screen of the entrance of the tent of meeting, and the hangings of the courtyard and the screen of the entrance of the courtyard that is round about the tabernacle and the altar, and its tent cords, for all its service. And of Kohath there were families of the Amramites and the family of the Izharites and the familty of Hebronites and the family of the Uzzielites. These were the families of the Kohathites. Among the number of all the males from 1 month and upward there were 8,600, taking care of the obligation to the holy place. The families of sons of Kohath were encamped on the side of the tabernacle to the south. And the chieftain of the paternal house for the families of Kohathites was Elizaphan the son of Uzziel. And their obligation was the Ark and the table and the lampstand and the altars and utensils of the holy place with which they would minister and the screen, all its service. And the chieftain of the chieftains of the Levites was Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest, who had the oversight of those taking care of the obligation to the holy place. Of Merari there were the families of Mahlites and Mushites. These were the families of Merari. And their registered ones by the number of all the males from 1 month upward were 6,200. And the chieftain of the paternal house for the families of Merari was Zuriel the son of Abihail. They were encamped on the side of the tabernacle toward the north. And the oversight for which the sons of Merari were obligated was over the panel frames of the tabernacle and its bars and its pillars and its socket pedestals and all its utensils and all its service, and the pillars of the courtyard round about and their socket pedestals and their tent pins and their tent cords. And those camping before the tabernacle toward the east, before the tent of meeting toward the sunrising, were Moses and Aaron and his sons, those taking care of the obligation to the sanctuary as the obligation for the sons of Israel. And any stranger coming near would be put to death. All the registered ones of the Levites whom Moses and Aaron registered at the order of God by their families, all the males from 1 month old upward, were 22,000. Then God said to Moses -- "Register all the 1stborn males of the sons of Israel from 1 month old upward, and take the number of their names. And you must take the Levites for me -- I am God -- in place of all the 1stborn among the sons of Israel, and the domestic animals of the Levites in place of all the 1tborn among domestic animals of the sons of Israel." And Moses proceeded, just as God commanded him, to register all the 1stborn among the sons of Israel. And all the 1stborn males by the number of the names from 1 month old upward of their registered ones came
to be 22,273. And God continued to speak to Moses, saying--"Take the Levites in place of all the 1stborn among the sons of Israel, and the domestic animals of the Levites in place of their domestic animals -- and the Levites must become mine. I am God. And as the ransom price of the 273 from the 1stborn of the sons of Israel, who are in excess of the Levites, you must take 5 shekels (money, dollars) for each individual. In the shekel of the holy place you should take it. A shekel is a 20 gerahs. (a shekel was "A dollar" 20 gerahs
= 20 nickels = a shekel = a dollar). And you must give the money to Aaron and his sons as the ransom price of those who are in excess of them." So Moses took the money of the redemption price from those who were in excess of the ransom price of the Levites. From the 1stborn of the sons of Israel he took the money, a 1,365 shekels, in the shekel of the holy place. Then Moses gave the money of the ransom price to Aaron and his sons according to the order of God, just as God had commanded Moses. 4 God now spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying --"There will be a taking of the sum of the sons of Kohath from among the sons of Levi, according to their families in the house of their fathers, from 30 years old upward to 50 years old, all those going into the service group to do the work in the tent of meeting. "This is the service of the sons of Kohath in the tent of meeting. It is something most holy. And Aaron and his sons must come in when the camp is departing, and they must take down the screening curtain and must cover the ark of the testimony with it. And they must put a covering of sealskins over it and spread out an entire cloth of blue on top and put in its poles. "And they will spread out a cloth of blue over the table of showbread, and they must put upon it the dishes, and the cups and the bowls and the pitchers of the drink offering -- and the constant bread should continue on it. And they must spread out a cloth of coccus scarlet over them, and they must cover it with a covering of sealskins and put in its poles. And they must take a cloth of blue and cover the lampstand of the luminary and its lamps and its snuffers and its fire holders and all its vessels for oil with which they regularly minister to it. And they must put it and all its utensils into a covering of sealskins and put it upon a bar. And over the golden altar they will spread out a cloth of blue, and they must cover it with a covering of sealskins and put in its poles. And they must take all the utensils of the ministry with which they regularly minister in the holy place, and they must put them in a cloth of blue and cover them with a covering of sealskins and put them upon a bar. "And they must clear away the fatty ashes of the altar and spread out a cloth of wool dyed reddish purple over it. And they must put upon it all its utensils with which they regularly minister at it, the fire holders, the forks and the shovels and the bowls, all the utensils of the altar -- and they must spread out over it a covering of sealskins and put in its poles. "And Aaron and his sons must finish covering the holy place and all the utensils of the holy place when the camp is departing, and after that the sons
of Kohath will come in to carry them, but they must not touch the holy place so that hey have to die. These things are the load the of the sons of Kohath in the tent of meeting. "And the oversight of Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest is over the oil of the luminary and the perfumed incense and the constant grain offering and the anointing oil, the oversight of all the tabernacle and all that is in it, namely, the holy place and its utensils." And God spoke further to Moses and Aaron, saying --"Do not let the tribe of the families of the Kohathites be cut off from among the Levites. But do this for them that they may indeed keep alive and may not die for their approaching the most holy things. Aaron and his sons will come in, and they must assign them each one to his service and to his load. They must not come in to see the holy things for the least moment of time, and so they have to die." Then God spoke to Moses, saying--" There will be a taking of the sum of the sons of Gershon, yes, them by the house of their fathers according to their families. From 30 years old upward 50 years you will register them, all who come to enter into the service group to render service in the tent of meeting. This is the service of the families of the Gershonites as to serving and as to carrying. And they must carry the tent cloths of the tabernacle and the tent of meeting, its covering and the sealskin covering that is on top over it, and the screen of the entrance of the tent of meeting, and the hangings of the courtyard and the entrance screen of the gate of the courtyard that is round about the tabernacle and the altar, and their tent cords and all their service utensils, and all things with which work is regularly done. Thus they must serve. At the order of Aaron and his sons all the service of the sons of the Gershonites should take place as regards all their loads and all their service, and you must assign all their loads to them by obligation. This is the service of the families of the sons of the Gershonites in the tent of meeting, and their obligatory service is under the hand of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest. "As for the sons of Merar'i, you will register them by their families in the house their fathers. From 30 years old upward 50 to years you will register them, all who enter into the service group to render the service of the tent of meeting. And this is their obligation, their load, according to all their service in the tent of meeting -- the panel frames of the tabernacle and its bars and its pillars and its socket pedestals, and the pillars of the courtyard round about and their socket pedestals and their tent pins and their tent cords together with all their equipment and all their service. And by their names you will assign the equipment for which they are obligated, as their load. This is the service of the families of the sons of Merari according to all their service in the tent of meeting, under the hand of Ith'amar the sons of Aaron the priest." And Moses and Aaron and the chieftains of the assembly proceeded to register the sons of the Kohathites by their families and by the house of their fathers, from 30 years old upward to 50 years, all who entered into the service group for the service in the tent of meeting. And the ones registered of them by their families came to be 2,750. These are the registered ones of the families of the Kohathites, all those serving in the tent of meeting, whom Moss and Aaron registered at the order of God by means of Moses. As for the registered ones of the sons of Gershon by their families and by the house of their fathers, from 30 years old to 50 years, all who entered into the service group for the service in the tent of meeting. And the ones registered
of them by their families came to be 2,750. These are the registered ones of the families of the Kohathites, all those serving in the tent of meeting, whom Moses and Aaron registered at the order of God by means of Moses. As for the registered ones of the sons of Gershon by their families and by the house of their fathers, from 30 years upward to 50 years, all who entered into the service group for the service in the tent of meeting, the ones registered of them by their families, by the house of their fathers, came to be 2,630. These were the registered ones of the families of the sons of Gershon, all those serving in the tent of meeting, whom Moses and Aaron registered at the order of God. As for the registered ones of their families of the sons of Merari by their families, by the house of their fathers, from 30 years old upward to 50 years old, all those entering into the service group for the service in the tent of meeting, the ones registered of them by their families came to be 3,200. These were the registered ones of the families of the sons of Merari, whom Moses and Aaron registered at the order of God by means of Moses. All the registered ones whom Moses and Aaron and the chieftains of Israel registered as Levites by their families and by the house of their fathers, from 30 years old upward to 50 years old, all those coming to render the laborious service and the service of carrying loads in the tent of meeting, their registered ones came to be 8,580. At the order of God they were registered by means of Moses, each one according to his service and his load, and they were registered just as God had commanded Moses. 5 And God spoke further to Moses, saying -- "Command the sons of Israel that they send out of the camp every leprous person and everyone having running discharge, and everyone unclean by a deceased soul. Whether a male or a female you should send them out. You should send them outside the camp, that they may not contaminate the camps of those in the midst of whom I am tabernacling." And the sons of Israel proceeded to do so, even to send them outside the camp. Just as God had spoken to Moses, so the sons of Israel did. And God continued speaking to Moses, saying--"Speak to the sons of Israel, 'As for a man or a woman, in case they do any of all the sins of mankind in committing an act of unfaithfulness against God, that soul has also become guilty. And they must confess their sin that they have done, and he must return the amount of his guilt in its principal, also adding a 5th to it, and he must give it to the one against whom he did wrong. But if the latter has no near relative to whom to return the amount of the guilt, the amount of guilt that is being returned to God belongs to the priest, except the ram of atonement with which he will make atonement for him. "'And every contribution of all the holy things of the sons of Israel, which they will present to the priest, should become his. And the holy things of each one will remain his own. Whatever each one may give to the priest, that will become his.'"
And God went on to speak to Moses, saying --"Speak to the sons of Israel and you must say to them -- 'In case any man's wife turns aside in that she does commit an act of unfaithfulness against him, and another man actually lies down with her and has an emission of semen, and it has been hidden from the eyes of her husband and has remained undiscovered, and she, on her part has defiled herself, but there is no witness against her, and she herself has not been caught -- and the spirit of jealousy has passed upon him, and he has become suspicious of his wife's faithfulness, and she in fact has defiled herself, or the spirit of jealousy has passed upon him, and he has become suspicious of his wife's faithfulness, but she in fact has not defiled herself -- then the man must bring his wife to the priest and bring her offering along with her, a 10th of an ephah (1 ephah is 22 liters so 1/10 of ephah is 2.2 liters) of barley flour. He must not pour oil upon it nor pour frankincense upon it, because it is a grain offering of jealousy, a memorial grain offering brining error to remembrance. "'And the priest must bring her forward and make her stand before God. And the priest must take holy water in an earthenware vessel, and the priest will take some of the dust that happens to be on the floor of the tabernacle, and he must put it in the water. And the priest must make the woman stand before God and loosen the hair of the woman's head and put upon her palms the memorial grain offering, that is, the grain offering of jealousy, and in the hand of the priest there should be the bitter water that brings a curse. "'And the priest must make her swear, and he must say to the woman -- "If no man has lain down with you and if while under your husband you have not turned aside in any uncleanness, be free of the effect of this bitter water that brings a curse. But you in case you have turned aside while under your husband and in case you have defiled yourself and some man has put in you his seminal emission, besides your husband --" The priest must now make the woman swear with an oath involving cursing, and the priest must say to the woman--"May God set you for a cursing and an oath in the midst of your people by God's letting your thigh to fall away and your belly swell. And this water that brings a curse must enter into your intestines to cause your belly to swell and the thigh to fall away." To this the woman must say--"Amen! Amen!" "'And the priest must write these cursings in the book and must wipe them out into the bitter water. And he must make the woman drink the bitter water that brings a curse, and the water that brings a curse must enter into her as something bitter. And the priest must take the grain offering of jealousy from the woman's hand and wave the grain offering to and fro before God, and he must bring it near the altar. And the priest must grasp some of the grain offering as a remembrancer of it and must make it smoke upon the altar, and afterward he will make the woman drink the water. When he has made her drink the water, it must also occur that if she has defiled herself in that she committed an act of unfaithfulness toward her husband, the water that brings a curse must then enter into her as something bitter, and her belly must swell, and her thigh must fall away, and the woman must become a cursing
in among her people. However, if the woman has not defiled herself but she is clean, she must then be free from such punishment; and she must be made pregnant with semen. "'This is the law about jealousy, where a woman may turn aside while under her husband, and she does defile herself. or in the case of a man where the spirit of jealousy may pass upon him, and he does suspect his wife of unfaithfulness -- and he must make the wife stand before God, and the priest must carry out toward her all this law. And the man must be innocent of error, but that wife will answer for her error.'" 6 And God spoke further to Moses, saying -- "Speak to the sons of Israel and you must say to them, 'In case a man or a woman takes a special vow to live as a Nazirite (separate from God, consecrated to God, abstinate from wine, grow long hair, and not defiling oneself by a presence of a corpse) to God, he should keep away from wine and intoxicating liquor. He should not drink the vinegar of wine or the vinegar from intoxicating liquor, nor drink any liquid made from grapes, nor eat grapes either fresh or dried. All the days of his Naziriteship he should not eat anything at all that is made from the wine vine, from the unripe grapes to the skins. "'All the days of the vow of his Naziriteship no razor should pass over his head -- until the days that he should be separated to God come to the full, he should prove holy by letting the locks of hair of his head to grow. All the days of his keeping separate to God he may not come toward any dead soul. Not even for his father or his mother or his brother or his sister may he defile himself when they die, because the sign of his Naziriteship to his God upon his head. "' All the days of his Nazirteship he is holy to God. But in case anyone dying should die quite suddenly alongside him so that he has defiled the head of his Naziriteship, he must then shave his head in the day of establishing his purification. On the 7th day he should shave it. And on the 8th day he should bring 2 turtledoves or 2 young pigeons to the priest to the entrance of the tent of meeting. And the priest must handle one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering and make atonement for him, since he has sinned because of the dead soul. Then he must sanctify his head on that day. And he must live as a Nazirite to God for the days of his Naziriteship, and he must bring a young ram in its 1st year as a guilt offering -- and the former days will go uncounted because he defiled his Naziriteship. "'Now this is the law about the Nazirite -- On the day that the days of his Naziriteship come to the full, he will be brought to the entrance of the tent of meeting. And he must present as his offering to God one sound young ram in its 1st year as a burnt offering and one sound female lamb in its 1st year as a sin offering and one sound ram as a communion sacrifice, and a basket of unfermented ring shaped cakes of fine flour, moistened with oil, and unfermented wafers smeared with oil, and their grain offering and their drink offerings. And the priest must present them before God and render up his sin offering and his burnt offering. And he will render up the ram as a communion sacrifice to God along with the basket of unfermented cakes -- and the
priest must render up its grain offering and its drink offering. "'And the Nazirite must shave the head of his Naziriteship at the entrance of the tent of meeting, and he must take the hair of the head of his Naziriteship and put it upon the fire that is under the communion sacrifice. And the priest must take a boiled shoulder from the ram and one unfermented ring shaped cake out of the basket, and one unfermented wafer, and put them upon the palms of the Nazirite after he has had the sign of his Naziriteship shaved off. And the priest must wave them to and fro as a wave offering before God. It is something holy for the priest, along with the breast of the wave offering, and the leg of the contribution. And afterward the Nazirite may drink wine. "'This is the law about the Nazirite who vows -- his offering to God over his Naziriteship, besides that which he can afford. According to his vow that he may make, so he should do because of the law of his Naziriteship.'" Then God spoke to Moses, saying -- "Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying, 'This is the way you should bless the sons of Israel, saying to them -- "May God bless you and keep you. May God make his face shine toward you, and may he favor you. May God lift up his face toward you and assign peace to you"' And they must place my name upon the sons of Israel, that I myself may bless them. 7 Now about on the day that Moses finished setting up the tabernacle that he proceeded to anoint it, and to sanctify it, and all its furnishings and the altar, and all its utensils. Thus he anointed them and sanctified them. Then the chieftains of the Israel, the heads of the house of their fathers, made a presentation, they being the chieftains of the tribes and standing over the ones registered, and they brought their offering before God, 6 covered wagons and 12 cattle, 1 wagon for 2 chieftains and 1 bull for each one -- and they presented them before the tabernacle. At this God said to Moses -- "Accept them from them, as they must serve for carrying on the service of the tent of meeting, and you must give them to Levites, each one in proportion to his own service." So Moses accepted the wagons and the cattle and gave them to the Levites. 2 wagons and 4 cattle he gave to the sons of Gershon in proportion to their service, and 4 wagons and 8 cattle he gave to the sons of Merari in proportion to their service, under the hand of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest. But to the sons of Kohath he gave none, because the service of the holy place was upon them. They did their carrying on the shoulder. Now the chieftains made their presentation at the inauguration of the altar on the day of its being anointed, and the chieftains proceeded with presenting their offering before the altar. So God said to Moses--"One chieftain on one day and another chieftain on another day is the way they will present their offering for the inauguration of the altar." Now the one presenting his offering on the 1st day proved to be Nahshon the son of Amminadab of the tribe of Judah. And his offering was one silver dish, its weight being a 130 shekels, 1 silver
bowl of 70 shekels by the shekel of the holy place, both of them full of fine flour moistened with oil for a grain offering -- 1 gold cup of 10 shekels, full of incense -- 1 young bull, 1 ram, 1 male lamb in its 1st year, for a burnt offering, 1 kid of the goats for a sin offering -- and for a communion sacrifice 2 cattle, 5 rams, 5 he-goats, 5 male lambs each 1 year old. This was offering of Nashon the son of Amminadab. On the 2nd day Nethanel the son of Zuar, the chieftain of Issachar, made a presentation. He presented as his offering one silver dish, its weight being a 130 shekels, one silver bowl of 70 shekels by the shekel of the holy place, both of them full of fine flour moistened with oil for a grain offering -- 1 gold cup of 10 shekels, full of incense -- 1 young bull, 1 ram, 1 male lamb in its 1st year, for a burnt offering, 1 kid goat of the goats for a sin offering -- and for a communion sacrifice 2 cattle, 5 rams, 5 he-goats, 5 male lambs each 1 year old. This was offering of Nethanel the son of Zuar. On the 3rd day there was the chieftain for the sons of Zebulun, Eliab the son of Helon. His offering was 1 silver dish, its weight being a 130 shekels, 1 silver bowl of 70 shekels by the shekel of the holy place, both of them full of fine flour moistened with oil for a grain offering -- 1 gold cup of 10 shekels, full of incense -- 1 young bull, 1 ram, 1 male lamb in its 1st year, for a burnt offering -- 1 kid of the goats for a sin offering -- and for a communion sacrifice 2 cattle, 5 rams, 5 he-goats, 5 male lambs each 1 year old. This was offering of Eliab the son of Helon. On the 4th day there was the chieftan for the sons of Reuben, Elizur the son of Shedeur. His offering was 1 silver dish, its weight being a 130 shekels, 1 silver bowl of 70 shekels by the shekel of the holy place, both of them full of fine flour moistened with oil for a grain offering -- 1 gold cup of 10 shekels, full of incense -- 1 young bull, 1 ram, 1 male lamb in its 1st year, for a burnt offering -- 1 kid of the goats for a sin offering -- and for a communion sacrifice 2 cattle, 5 rams, 5 he-goats, 5 male lambs each 1 year old. This was offering of Elizur the son of Shedeur. On the 5th day there was the chieftian for the sons of Simeon, Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai. His offering was 1 silver dish, its weight being a 130 shekels, 1 silver bowl of 70 shekels by the shekel of the holy place, both of them full of fine flour moistened with oil for a grain offering -- 1 gold cup of 10 shekels, full of incense -- 1 young bull, 1 ram, 1 male lamb in its 1st year, for a burnt offering -- 1 kid of the goats for a sin offering -- and for a communion sacrifice 2 cattle, 5 rams, 5 he-goats, 5 male lambs each 1 year old. This was offering of Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai. On the 6th day there was the chieftain for the sons of Gad, Eliasaph the son of Deuel. His offering was 1 silver dish, its weight being a 130 shekels, 1 silver bowl of 70 shekels by the shekel of the holy place, both of them full of fine flour moistened with oil for a grain offering -- 1 gold cup of 10 shekels,
full of incense, 1 young bull, 1 ram, 1 male lamb in its 1st year, for a burnt offering -- 1 kid of the goats for a sin offering -- and for a communion sacrifice 2 cattle, 5 rams, 5 he-goats, 5 male lambs each 1 year old. This was offering of Eliasaph the son of Deuel. On the 7th day there was the chieftain for the son of Ephraim, Elishama the son of Ammihud. His offering was 1 silver dish, its weight being a 130 shekels, 1 silver bowl of 70 shekels by the shekel of the holy place, both of them full of fine flour moistened with oil for a grain offering -- 1 gold cup of 10 shekels, full of incense -- 1 young bull, 1 ram, 1 male lamb in its 1st year, for a burnt offering -- 1 kid of the goats for a sin offering -- and for a communion sacrifice 2 cattle, 5 rams, 5 he-goats, 5 male lambs each 1 year old. This was offering of Elishama the son of Ammihud. On the 8th day there was the chieftian for the sons of Manasseh, Gemaliel the son of Pedahzur. His offering was 1 silver dish, its weight being a 130 shekels, 1 silver bowl of 70 shekels by the shekel of the holy place, both of them full of fine flour moistened with oil for a grain offering -- 1 gold cup of 10 shekels, full of incense -- 1 young bull, 1 ram, 1 male lamb in its 1st year, for a burnt offering -- 1 kid of the goats for a sin offering -- and for a communion sacrifice 2 cattle, 5 rams, 5 he-goats, 5 male lambs each 1 year old. This was offering of Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur. On the 9th day there was the chieftain for the sons of Benjamin, Abidan the son of Gideoni. His offering was 1 silver dish, its weight being a 130 shekels, 1 silver bowl of 70 shekels by the shekel of the holy place, both of them full of fine flour moistened with oil for a grain offering -- 1 gold cup of 10 shekels, full of incense -- 1 young bull, 1 ram, 1 male lamb in its 1st year, for a burnt offering -- 1 kid of the goats for a sin offering -- and for a communion sacrifice 2 cattle, 5 rams, 5 he-goats, 5 male lambs each 1 year old. This was offering of Abidan the son of Gideoni. On the 10th day there was the chieftain for the sons of Dan, Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai. His offering was 1 silver dish, its weight being a 130 shekels, 1 silver bowl of 70 shekels by the shekel of the holy place, both of them full of fine flour moistened with oil for a grain offering -- 1 gold cup of 10 shekels, full of incense -- 1 young bull, 1 ram, 1 male lamb in its 1st year, for a burnt offering -- 1 kid of the goats for a sin offering -- and for a communion sacrifice 2 cattle, 5 rams, 5 he-goats, 5 male lambs each 1 year old. This was offering of Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai. On the 11th day there was the chieftain for the sons of Asher, Pagiel the son of Ochran. His offering was 1 silver dish, its weight being a 130 shekels, 1 silver bowl of 70 shekels by the shekel of the holy place, both of them full of fine flour moistened with oil for a grain offering -- 1 gold cup of 10 shekels, full of incense -- 1 young bull, 1 ram, 1 male lamb in its 1st year, for a burnt offering -- 1 kid of the goats for a sin offering -- and
for a communion sacrifice 2 cattle, 5 rams, 5 he-goats, 5 male lambs each 1 year old. This was offering of Pagiel the son of Ochran. On the 12th day there was the chieftain for the sons of Naphtali, Ahira the son of Enan. His offering was 1 silver dish, its weight being a 130 shekels, 1 silver bowl of 70 shekels by the shekel of the holy place, both of them full of fine flour moistened with oil for a grain offering -- 1 gold cup of 10 shekels, full of incense -- 1 young bull, 1 ram, 1 male lamb in its 1st year, for a burnt offering -- 1 kid of the goats for a sin offering -- and for a communion sacrifice 2 cattle, 5 rams, 5 he-goats, 5 male lambs each 1 year old. This was offering of Ahira the son of Enan. This was the inauguration offering of the altar on the day of its being anointed, on the part of the chieftains of Israel -- 12 silver dishes, 12 silver bowls, 12 gold cups -- 130 shekels to each silver dish, and 70 to each bowl, all the silver of the vessels being 2,400 shekels by the shekel of the holy place -- the 12 gold cups of the full of incense being 10 shekels respectively to a cup by the shekel of the holy place-- all the gold of the cups being 120 shekels-- all the cattle for the burnt offering being 12 bulls, 12 rams, 12 male lambs each 1 year old and their grain offerings, 12 kids of the goats for a sin offering -- and all the cattle of the communion sacrifice being 24 bulls, 60 rams, 60 he-goats, 60 male lambs each 1 year old. This was the inauguration offering of the altar after its being anointed. Now whenever Moses went into the tent of meeting to speak with him. then he would hear the voice conversing with him from above the cover that was upon the ark of the testimony, from between the 2 cherubs -- and he would speak to him. 8 And God proceeded to talk to Moses, saying --"Speak to Aaron, and you must say to him, 'Whenever you light up the lamps, the 7 lamps should shine on the area in front of the lampstand.'" And Aaron began to do so. He lit up its lamps for the area in front of the lampstand, just as God had commanded Moses. Now this was the workmanship of the lampstand. It was hammered work of gold. Up to its sides and up to its blossoms it was hammered work. According to the vision that God had shown Moses, so he had made the lampstand. And God spoke further to Moses, saying--"Take the Levites from among the sons of Israel, and you must cleanse them. And this is what you should do to them to cleanse them -- Spatter sin-cleansing water upon them, and they must have a razor pass over all their flesh (shave) and must wash their garments and cleanse themselves. Then they must take a young bull and its grain offering of fine flour moistened with oil, and you will take another young bull for a sin offering. And you must present the Levites before the tent of meeting and congregate the sons of Israel. And you must present the Levites before God, and the sons of Israel must lay their hands upon the Levites. And Aaron must cause Levites to move to and
fro before God as a wave offering from the sons of Israel, they must serve for carrying on the service of God. "Then the Levites will lay their hands upon the heads of the bulls. After that, render up the one as a sin offering, and the other as a burnt offering to God to make atonement for the Levites. And you must have the Levites stand before Aaron and his sons and must cause them to move to and fro as a wave offering to God. And you must separate the Levites from among the sons of Israel, and the Levites must become mine. And afterward the Levites will come in to serve at the tent of meeting. So you must cleanse them and cause them to move to and fro as a wave offering. For they are given ones, given to me from among the sons of Israel. In place of those opening all wombs, all the 1stborn of the sons of Israel, I must take them for myself. For every firstborn among in the sons of Israel is mine, among man and among beast. On the day of my striking every 1stborn in the land of Egypt I sanctified them to myself. And I shall take the Levites in place of all the 1stborn among the sons of Israel. And I shall give the Levites as given ones to Aaron and his sons from among the sons of Israel, to carry on the service of the sons of Israel in the tent of meeting and to make atonement for the sons of Israel, that no plague (sickness) may occur among the sons of Israel because the sons of Israel approach the holy place." And Moses and Aaron and all the assembly of the sons of Israel proceeded to do so to the Levites. In accord with all that God had commanded Moses as regards the Levites, that is the way the sons of Israel did to them. So the Levites purified themselves and washed their garments, after which Aaron caused them to move to and fro as a wave offering before God. Then Aaron made an atonement for them to cleanse them. 1st after that the Levites came in to carry on their service in the tent of meeting before Aaron and his sons. Just as God had commanded Moses respecting the Levites, so they did to them. God now spoke to Moses, saying --"This is what applies to the Levites -- From 25 years old upward he will come to enter into the company in the service of the tent of meeting. But after the age of 50 years he will retire from the service company and serve no longer. And he must minister to his brothers in the tent of meeting in taking care of the obligation, but he must render no service. In accord with this you will do to the Levites in their obligation." 9 And God proceeded to speak to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai in the 2nd year of their coming out of the land of Egypt, in the 1st month, saying--"Now the sons of Israel should prepare the passover sacrifice at its appointed time. On the 14th day in this month between the 2 evenings you should prepare it at its appointed time. According to all its statutes, and all its regular procedures you should prepare it." So Moses spoke to the sons of Israel to prepare the passover sacrifice. Then they prepared the passover sacrifice in the 1st month, on the 14th day of the month between the 2 evenings, in the wilderness of Sinai. According to all that God had commanded Moses, so the sons of Israel did.
Now there happened to be men who had become unclean by a human soul so that they were not able to prepare the passover sacrifice on that day. Hence they presented themselves before Moses and Aaron on that day. Then those men said to him -- "We are unclean by a human soul. Why should we be restrained from presenting the offering to God at its appointed time in the midst of the sons of Israel?" At this Moses said to them: "Stand there, and let me hear what God may command regarding you." Then God spoke to Moses, saying--"Speak to the sons of Israel, saying -- 'Although any man of you, or of your generations should happen to be unclean by a soul, or off on a distant journey, he too must prepare the passover sacrifice to God. In the 2nd month, on the 14th day between the 2 evenings, they should prepare it. Together with unfermented cakes and bitter greens they should eat it. They must not let any of it remain until morning, and they should break no bone in it. According to the whole statute of the passover they should prepare it. But when the man was clean, or did not happen to be off on a journey and neglected to prepare the passover sacrifice, that soul must then be cut off from his people, because the offering of God he did not present at its appointed time. For his sin that man will answer. "'And in case an alien resident should be residing with you as an alien, he also must prepare the passover sacrifice to God. According to the statute of the passover and according to its regular procedure is the way he should do. There should exist one statute for you people, both for the alien resident and for the native of the land.'" Now on the day of setting up the tabernacle the cloud covered the tabernacle of the tent of the Testimony, but in the evening what appeared to be fire continued over the tabernacle until morning. That is the way it went on constantly -- The cloud would cover it by day, and the appearance of fire by night. And whenever the cloud would go up from over the tent, the sons of Israel would pull away right afterward, and in the place where the cloud would reside, there is where the sons of Israel would encamp. At the order of God the sons of Israel would pull away, and at the order of God they would encamp. All the days that the cloud would reside over the tabernacle, they would remain encamped. And when the cloud prolonged its stay over the tabernacle many days, the sons of Israel also kept their obligation to God that they should not pull away. And sometimes the cloud would continue a few days over the tabernacle. At the order of God they would remain encamped, and at the order of God they would pull away. And sometimes the cloud would continue from evening to morning -- and the cloud lifted itself in the morning and they pulled away. Whether it was by day or by night that the cloud lifted itself, they also pulled away. Whether it was 2 days or 1 month or more days during which the cloud prolonged its stay over the tabernacle by residing over it, the sons of Israel remained encamped and would not pull away, but when it lifted itself they would pull away. At the order of God they would encamp, and at the order of God they would pull away. They
kept their obligation to God at the order of God by means of Moses. 10 And God proceeded to speak to Moses, saying -- "Make yourself 2 trumpets of silver. You will make them of hammered work, and they must be at your service for converting the assembly and for breaking up the camps. And they must blow on them both, and the whole assembly must keep their appointment with you at the entrance of the tent of meeting. And if they should blow on just one, the chieftains as heads of the 1000s of Israel must also keep their appointment with you. "And you men must blow a fluctuating (varying) blast, and the camps of those camping to the east must pull away. And you must blow a fluctuating (varying) blast a second time, and the camps of those camping to the south must pull away. They should blow a fluctuating (varying) blast for each time one of them pulls away. "Now when calling the congregation together, you should blow, but you must not sound a flutuating (varying) blast. And Aaron's sons, the priests, should blow on the trumpets, and the use of them must serve as a statute for you men to time indefinite during your generations. "And in case you should enter into war in your land against the oppressor who is harassing you, you must also sound a war call on the trumpets, and you will certainly be remembered before God your Lord and be saved from your enemies. "And in the day of your rejoicing and in your festal seasons and at the commencements of your months, you must blow on the trumpets over your burnt offerings and your communion sacrifices -- and their use must serve as a memorial for you before God your Lord. I am Jehovah your God." Now it came about that in the 2nd year, in the 2nd month, on the 20th day in the month, the cloud lifted itself from over the tabernacle of the Testimony. And the sons of Israel began to pull away in the manner of their departures from the wilderness of Sinai, and the cloud proceeded to reside in the wilderness of Paran. And they began pulling away for the 1st time, according to the order of God by means of Moses. So the 3-tribe divisions of the camp of the sons of Judah pulled away 1st of all their armies, and Nahshon the son of Amminadab was over its army. And over the army of the tribe of the sons of Issachar there was Nethanel the son of Zuar. And over the army of the tribe of the sons of Zebulun there was Eliab the son of Helon. And the tabernacle was taken down, and the sons of Gershon and the sons of Merari as carriers of the tabernacle pulled away. And the 3-tribe division of the camp of the Reuben pulled away in their armies, and Elizur the son of Shedeur was over its army. And over the army of the tribe of the sons of Simeon there was Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai. And over the army of the tribe of the sons of Gad there was Eliasaph the son of Deuel. And the Kohathites as carriers of the sanctuary pulled away, as they will have set up the tabernacle by the time of their coming. And the 3-tribe division of the camp of the sons of
Ephraim pulled away in their armies, and Elishama the son of Ammihud was over its army. And over the army of the tribe of the sons of Manasseh there was Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur. And over the army of the tribe of the sons of Benjamin there was Abidan the son of Gideoni. And the 3-tribe division of the camp of the sons of Dan pulled away as forming the rear guard for all the camps in their armies, and Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai was over its army. And over the army of the tribe of the sons of Asher there was Pagiel the son of Ochran. And over the army of the tribe of the sons of Naphtali there was Ahira the son of Enan. In this manner were the departures of the sons of Israel in their armies when they would pull away. Then Moses said to Hobab the son of Reuel the Midianite, the father-in-law of Moses --"We are pulling away for the place about which God said, 'I shall give it to you.' Do come with us, and we shall certainly do good to you, because God has spoken good concerning Israel." But he said to him--"I shall not go along, but I shall go to my own country and to my relatives." At this he said --"Please, do not leave us, because, for the reason that you well know where we may encamp in the wilderness, you must serve as eyes for us. And it must occur that in case you should come with us, yes, it must occur that with what goodness God will do good with us, we, in turn, will do good to you." So they went marching from the mountain of God for a journey of 3 days, and the ark of God's covenant was marching before them for a journey of 3 days to search out a resting-place for them. And God's cloud was over them by day at their marching out from the encampment. And it would occur that when the Ark would set out, Moses would say--"Do arise, O God, and let your enemies be scattered, and let those who intensely hate you flee from before you." And when it would rest, he would say--"Do return, O God, to the myriads of thousands of Israel." 11 Now the people became as men having something evil to complain about in the ears of God. When God got to hear it, then his anger grew hot, and a fire of God began to blaze against them and to consume some in the extremity of the camp. When the people began to cry out to Moses, then he made supplication to God, and the fire sank down. And the name of that place got to be called Taberah, because a fire of God had blazed against them. And the mixed crowd that was in the midst of them expressed selfish longing, and the sons of Israel too began to weep again and say -- "Who will give us meat to eat? How we remember the fish that we used to eat in Egypt for nothing, the cucumbers, and the watermelons and the leeks and the onions and garlic. But now our soul is dried away. Our eyes are on nothing at all except the manna." Incidentally, the manna was like coriander seed, and its look was like the look of bdellium gum. The people spread out and picked it up and ground it in hand mills or pounded it in a mortar, and they boiled it in cooking pots or made it into
round cakes, and its taste proved to be like the taste of an oiled sweet cake. When the dew descended upon the camp by night, the manna would descend upon it. And Moses got to hear the people weeping in their families, each man at the entrance of his tent. And God's anger began growing very hot, and in the eyes of Moses it was bad. Then Moses said to God--"Why have you caused evil to your servant, and why have I not found favor in your eyes, in placing the load of all this people upon me? Have I myself conceived all this people? Is it me who has given them birth, so that you should say to me, 'Carry them in your bosom, just as the male nurse carries the suckling, to the soil about which you swore to their forefathers? From where do I have meat to give to all this people? For they keep weeping to me, saying, 'Do give us meat, and let us eat!' I am not able, I by myself, to carry all this people, because they are too heavy for me. So if this is the way you are doing to me, please kill me off altogether, if I have found favor in your eyes, and let me not look upon my calamity." In turn God said to Moses -- "Gather for me 70 men of the older men of Israel, whom you know that they are older men of the people and officers of theirs, and you must take them to the tent of meeting, and they must station themselves there with you. And I shall have to come down speak with you there -- and I shall have to take away some of the spirit that is upon you and place it upon them, and they will have to help you in carrying the load of the people that you may not carry it, just you alone. And to the people you should say -- 'Sanctify (purify) yourselves for tomorrow, as you will certainly eat meat, because you have wept in the ears of God, saying, 'Who will give us meat to eat, for it was well with us in Egypt?" And God will certainly give you meat, and you will indeed eat. You will eat, not 1 day nor 2 days, nor 5 days nor 10 days, nor 20 days, but up to a month of days, until it comes out of your nostrils, and it has become a loathing to you, just because you rejected God, who is in your midst, and you went weeping before him, saying--"Why is it that we have come out of Egypt?"'" Then Moses said--"The people in the midst of whom I am are 600,00 men on foot, and yet you -- you have said, 'Meat I shall give them and they will certainly eat for a month of days'! Will flocks and herds will be slaughtered for them, for it to be adequate for them? Or will all the fish of the sea be caught for them, for it to be adequate for them?" At this God said to Moses --"The hand of God is cut short, is it? Now you will see whether what I say falls upon you or not." After that Moses went out and spoke to the people the words of God. And he went gathering 70 men from the older men of the people and proceeded to have them stand round about the tent. Then God came down in a cloud and spoke to him and took away some of the spirit that was upon him and put it upon each of the 70 older men. And it came about that as soon as the spirit settled down upon them, then they proceeded to act as prophets, but they did not do it again. Now there were 2 of the men remaining in the camp. The
name of the one was Eldad, and the name of the other was Medad. And the spirit began to settle down upon them, as they were among those written down, but they had not gone out to the tent. So they proceeded to act as prophets in the camp. And a young man went running and reporting to Moses and saying--"Eldad and Medad are acting as prophets in the camp!" Then Joshua the son of Nun, the minister of Moses from his young manhood on, responded and said --"My lord Moses, restrain them!" However, Moses said to him --"Are you feeling jealous for me? No, I wish that all of God's people were prophets, because God would put his spirit upon them!" Later Moses withdrew to the camp, he and the older men of Israel. And a wind burst forth from God and began driving quails out of the sea and letting them fall above the camp about a day's journey this way, and about a day's journey that way, all around the camp, and about 2 cubits (approx. 3 feet) above the surface of the earth. Then the people got up all that day and all night, and all the next day and kept gathering the quail. The one collecting least gathered 10 homers (approx. 2,200 liters. 1 homer is 220 liters), and they kept spreading them extensively all around the camp for themselves. The meat was yet between their teeth, before it could be chewed, when God's anger blazed against the people, and God began striking at the people with a very great slaughter. The name of that place came to be called Kibrothhattaavah, because there they buried the people who showed selfish craving. From Kibrothhattaavah the people pulled away for Hazeroth. 12 Now Miriam and Aaron began to speak against Moses on account of the Cushite wife whom he had taken, because it was a Cushite wife he had taken. And they kept saying--"Is it just by Moses alone that God has spoken?" And God was listening. And the man Moses was by far the meekest of all the men who were upon the surface of the ground. Then God suddenly said to Moses Aaron and Miriam -- "Go out, the 3 of you, to the tent of meeting." So the 3 of them went out. After that God came down in the pillar of cloud and stood at the entrance of the tent and called Aaron and Miriam. At this both of them went out. And he went on to say -- "Hear my words, please. If there came to be a prophet of yours for God, it would be in a vision I would make myself known to him. In a dream I would speak to him. Not so my servant Moses! He is being entrusted with all my house. Mouth to mouth I speak to him, thus showing him, and not by riddles -- and the appearance of God is what he beholds. Why, then, did you not fear to speak against my servant, against Moses?" And God's anger got to be hot against them, and he went his way. And the cloud turned away from over the tent, and look! Miriam was struck with leprosy as white as snow. Then Aaron turned toward Miriam, and look! she was struck with leprosy. Immediately Aaron said to Moses --"Excuse me, my lord! Do not, please attribute to us the sin in which we have acted foolishly and which we have committed!" Please, do not let her continue like someone dead, whose
flesh at the time of his coming out of his mother's womb is half eaten off!" And Moses began to cry out to God, saying -- "O God, please! Heal her, please!" Then God said to Moses -- "Were her father to spit directly in her face, would she not be humiliated 7 days? Let her be quarantined 7 days outside the camp, and afterward let her be received in." Accordingly Miriam was quarantined outside the camp 7 days, and the people did not pull away Hazeroth and took up camping in the wilderness of Paran. 13 God now spoke to Moses, saying --"Send out for yourself men that they may spy out the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the sons of Israel. You will send out one man for each tribe of his fathers, each one a chieftain among them." So Moses sent them out from the wilderness of Paran at the order of God. All the men were heads of the sons of Israel. And these are their names--
Of the tribes of Reuben, Shammua the son of Zaccur --
of the tribes of Simeon, Shaphat the son of Hori--
of the tribes of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephunneh--
of the tribes of Issachar, Igal the son of Joseph--
of the tribes of Ephraim, Hoshea the son Nun--
of the tribes of Benjamin, Palti the son of Raphu--
of the tribes of Zebulun, Gaddiel the son of Sodi--
of the tribes of Joseph for the tribe of Manasseh, Gaddi the son of Susi --
of the tribes ofDan, Ammiel the son of Gemalli --
of the tribes of Asher, Sethur the son of Michael --
of the tribes of Naphtali, Nahbi the son of Vophsi --
of the tribes of Gad, Geuel the son of Machi.
These are the names of the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land. And Moses continued to call Hoshea the son of Nun Jehoshua. When Moses was sending them to spy on the land of Canaan, he proceeded to say to them --"Go up here into the Negeb, and you must go up into the mountainous region. And you must see what the land is and the people who are dwelling on it, whether they are strong or weak, whether they are few or many -- and what the land is in which they are dwelling, whether it is good or bad, and what the cities are in which they are dwelling, whether it is in encampments or in fortifications (defense walls), and what the land is, whether is is fat or lean, whether there are trees in it or not. And you must show yourselves courageous, and take some of the fruitage of the land. Now the days were the days of the 1st ripe fruits of the grapes. So they went up and spied out the land from the wilderness of Zin to Rehob to the entering in of Hamath. When they went up into the Negeb, they then came to Hebron. Now Ahiman, Sheshai and Talmai, those born of Anak, were there. Incidentally, Hebron had been built 7 years before Zoan of Egypt. When they came to the torrent valley of Eshcol, they then proceeded to cut down from there a shoot with one cluster of grapes. And they went carrying it with a bar on 2 of the men, and also some of the pomegranates and some of the figs. They called that place the torrent valley of Eshcol, on account of the cluster that the sons of Israel cut down from there. Finally at the end of 40 days they returned from spying out the land. So they
walked and came to Moses and Aaron and all the assembly of the sons of Israel in the wilderness of Paran, at Kadesh. And they came bringing back word to them and all the assembly and showing them the fruitage of the land. And they went on to report to him and say-- "We entered into the land to which you sent us out, and it is indeed flowing with milk and honey, and this is its fruitage. Nevertheless, the facts are that the people who dwell in the land are strong, and the fortified cities are very great -- and, too, those born of Anak we saw there. The Amalekites are dwelling in the land of the Negeb, and the Hittites and the Jebusites, and the Amorites are dwelling in the mountainous region, and the Canaanites are dwelling by the sea and by the side of the Jordan." Then Caleb tried to still the people toward Moses and went on to say -- "Let us go up directly, and we are bound to take possession of it, because we can surely prevail over it." But the men who went up with him said--" We are not able to go up against the people, because they are stronger than we are." And they kept on bringing forth to the sons of Israel a bad report of the land that they had spied out, saying-- "The land, which we passed through to spy out, is a land that eats up its inhabitants -- and all the people whom we saw in the midst of it are men of extraordinary size. And there we saw the Nephilim (giants), the sons of Anak, who are from the Nephilim -- so that we became in our own eyes like grasshoppers, and the same way we became in their eyes" 14 Then all the assembly raised their voice, and the people continued giving went to their voice and weeping all through that night. And all the sons of Israel began to murmur against Moses and Aaron, and all the assembly began to say against them-- "If only we had died in the land of Egypt, or if only we had died in this wilderness. And why is God bringing us to this land to fall by the sword? Our wives and our little ones will become plunder. Is it not better for us to return to Egypt?" They even went to saying to one another -- "Let us appoint a head and let us return to Egypt!" At this Moses and Aaron fell upon their faces before all the congregation of the assembly of the sons of Israel. And Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, who were of those who spied out the land, ripped their garments apart, and they proceeded to say this to all the assembly of the sons of Israel-- "The land that we passed through to spy it out is a very very good land. If God has found delight in us, then he will certainly bring us into this land and give it to us, a land that is flowing with milk and honey. Only against God do not rebel, and you, do not fear the people of the land, for they are bread to us. Their shelter has turned away from over them, and God is with us. Do not fear them." However, all the assembly talked of pelting them with stones. And God's glory appeared on the tent of meeting to all the sons of Israel. Finally God said to Moses--"How long will this people treat me without respect, and how long will they not put faith in me for all the signs that I performed in among them? Let me strike them with pestilence and drive them away, and let me make you a nation greater and mightier than they are."
But Moses said to God --"Then the Egyptians will be bound to hear that you by your power have led this people up out of their midst. And they will be bound to tell it to the inhabitants of this land. They have heard that you are God in among this people, who has appeared face to face. You are God, and your cloud is standing over them, and you are going before them in the pillar of cloud by day and in the pillar of fire by night. Were you to put this people to death as one man, then the nations who have heard of your fame would certainly say this --'Because of God's not being able to bring this people into the land about which he swore to them he proceeded to slaughter them in the wilderness.' And now, please, let your power become great, O God, just as you have spoken, saying--'God, slow to anger and abundant in loving-kindness, pardoning error and transgression (Wrong, sin, offense) but by no means will he give exemption from punishment, bringing punishment for the error of the fathers upon sons, upon the 3rd generations, and 4th generation.' Forgive, please, the error of this people according to the greatness of your loving-kindness, and just as you have pardoned this people from Egypt onward until now." Then God said--"I do forgive according to your word. And, on the other hand, as I live, all the earth will be filled with the glory of God. But all the men who have seen my glory and my signs that I have performed in Egypt and in the wilderness and yet kept testing me these 10 times, and have not listened to my voice, will never see the land about which I swore to their fathers, yes, all those treating me without respect will not see it. As for my servant Caleb, because a different spirit has proved to be with him and he kept following wholly after me, I shall certainly bring him into the land where he has gone, and his offspring will take possession of it. While the Amalekites and the Canaanites are dwelling in the low plain, you people make a turn tomorrow and pull away to march to the wilderness by way of the Red Sea." And God went on to speak to Moses and Aaron, saying --"How long will this evil assembly have this murmuring that they are carrying on against me? I have heard the murmurings of the sons of Israel that they are murmuring against me. Say to them, '"As I live," is the utterance of God, "if I shall not do to you just that way as you have spoken in my ears!" In this wilderness your carcasses will fall, yes, all your registered ones of all your number from 20 years old upward, you who have murmured against me. As for you, you will not enter into the land in which I lifted my hand in oath to reside with you, except Caleb the son of Jephunneh and Joshua the son of Nun. "'"And your little ones who you said would become plunder, these also I shall certainly bring in, and they will indeed know the land that you have rejected. But the carcasses of you yourselves will fall in this wilderness. And your sons will become shepherds in the wilderness 40 years, and they will have to answer for your acts of fornication, until your carcasses come to their end in the wilderness. By the number of the days that you spied out the land, 40 days, a day for a year, a day for
a year, you will answer for your errors 40 years, as you must know what my being estranged means. "'"I God have spoken if this is not what I shall do to all this evil assembly, those who have gathered together against me. In this wilderness they will come to their end, and there they will die. And the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land and who, when they returned, began making whole assembly murmur against him, by bringing forth a bad report against the land, yes, the men bringing forth the bad report about the land will die by evil before God. But Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh will certainly live on, of those men who went to spy out the land."'" When Moses proceeded to speak these words to all the sons of Israel, then the people began to mourn a great deal. Moreover, they got up early in the morning, and tried to go up to the top of the mountain, saying--"Here we are, and we have to go up the place that God mentioned. For we have sinned. But Moses said--"Why is it that you are passing beyond the order of God? But that will not succeed. Do not go up, because God is not in your midst, that you may not be defeated before your enemies. For the Amalekites, and the Canaanites are there before you -- and you are certain to fall by the sword, because, for the reason that you turned back from following God, God will not continue with you." However, they presumed to go up to the top of the mountain, but the ark of God's covenant and Moses did not move away from the mist of the camp. Then the Amalekites and the Canaanites who were dwelling in that mountain came on down and began striking them and went scattering them as far as Hormah. 15 And God spoke further to Moses, saying -- "Speak to the sons of Israel, and you must say to them, 'When you eventually come into the land of your living places, which I am giving you, and you must render up an offering made by fire to God, a burnt offering or a sacrifice to perform a special vow or voluntarily or during your seasonal festivals, in order to make a restful odor to God, from the herd or from the flock -- the one presenting his offering must also present to God a grain offering of fine flour, a 10th of an ephah (1 ephah is 22 liter), moistened with a 4th of a hin (approx. 1 hin is 3.67 liter) of oil. And you should render up wine as a drink offering, the 4th of a hin, together with the burnt offering or for the sacrifice of each male lamb. Or for a ram you should render up a grain offering of 2/10 of fine flour, moistened with a 3rd of a hin of oil. And you should present wine as a drink offering, a 3rd of a hin, as a restful odor to God. "'But in case you should render up a male of the herd as a burnt offering or a sacrifice to perform a special vow or communion sacrifices to God, one must also present together with the male of the herd a grain offering of 3/10 of fine flour, moistened with 1/2 a hin of oil. And you should present wine as a drink offering, 1/2 a hin as an offering made by fire, of a restful odor to God. This is the way it should be done for each bull or for each ram or for one head among the male lambs or among the goats.
Whatever may be the number that you may render up, that is the way you should do for each one according to the number of them. Every native should render up these in this way in presenting an offering made by fire, of a restful odor to God. "'And in case there should be residing as an alien with you an alien resident or one who is in your midst for generations of you, and he must render up an offering made by fire, of a restful odor to God, just as you should do, so he should do. You who are of the congregation and the alien resident who is living as an alien will have one statute. It will be a statute to time indefinite for your generations. The alien resident should prove to be the same as you before God. There should prove to be one law and one judicial decision for you and for the alien resident who is residing as an alien with you.'" And God went on to speak to Moses --"Speak to the sons of Israel, and you must say to them, 'On your coming into the land where I am bringing you, it must also occur that when you eat any of the bread of the land, you should make a contribution to God. You should make a contribution of the 1stfruits of your coarse meal as ring shaped cakes. Like the contribution of a threshing floor is the way you should contribute it. Some of the 1stfruits of your coarse meal you should give as a contribution to God throughout your generations. "'Now in case you should make a mistake and not do all these commandments, which God has spoken to Moses, all that God has commanded you by means of Moses from the day that God commanded and onward for your generations, it must then occur that if it has been done far from the eyes of the assembly by mistake, the whole assembly must then render up one young bull a burnt offering for a restful odor to God, and its grain offering and its drink offering according to the regular procedure, and one kid of the goats as a sin offering. And the priest must make atonement for the whole assembly of the sons of Israel, and it must be forgiven them -- because it was a mistake, and they, for their part, brought as their offering an offering made by fire to God and their sin offering before God for their mistake. And it must be forgiven the whole assembly of the sons of Israel and the alien resident who is living as an alien in their midst, because it was by mistake on the part of all the people. "'And if any soul should sin by mistake, then he must present a female goat in its first year for a sin offering. The priest must make atonement for the soul who made a mistake by a sin unintentionally before God, so as to make atonement for it, and it must be forgiven for him. As to the native among the sons of Israel and the alien resident who is residing as an alien resident who is residing as an alien in their midst, there should prove to be one law for you as respects doing something unintentionally. "'But the soul that does something deliberately, whether he is a native or an alien resident, he speaking abusively of God, in that case that soul must be cut off from among his people. Because it is God's word that he has despised and his commandment that he has broken, that soul should be cut off without fail. His own error is upon him.'"
While the sons of Israel were continuing in the wilderness, they once found a man collecting pieces of wood on the sabbath day. Then those who found him collecting pieces of wood brought him up to Moses and Aaron and the whole assembly. So they committed him into custody, because it had not been distinctly stated what should be done to him. In time God said to Moses --"Without fail the man should be put to death, the whole assembly pelting him with stones outside the camp. According the whole assembly brought him forth outside the camp and pelted him with stones so that he died, just as God had commanded Moses. And God went on to say this to Moses--"Speak to the sons of Israel, and you must say to them that they must make for themselves fringed edges upon the skirts of their garments throughout their generations, and they must put a blue string above the fringed edge of the skirt, 'And it must serve as a fringed edge for you, and you must see it, and remember all the commandments of God and do them, and you must not go about following your hearts and your eyes, which you are following in immoral interc*urse (se*). The purpose is that you may remember and may certainly do all my commandments and indeed prove to be holy to your God. I am God your Lord, who have brought you out of the land of Egypt in order to prove myself your God. I am God your Lord.'" 16 And Korah the son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, proceeded to get up, together with Dathan and Abiram the sons of Eliab, and On the son of Peleth, the sons of Reuben. And they proceeded to rise up before Moses, they and 250 men of the sons of Israel, chieftains of the assembly, summoned ones of the meeting, men of fame. So they congregated themselves against Moses and Aaron and said to them--"That is enough of you, because the whole assembly are all of them holy and God is in their midst. Why, then, should you lift yourselves up above the congregation of God?" When Moses got to hear it he at once fell upon his face. Then he spoke to Korah and to his entire assembly, saying: --"In the morning God will make known who belongs to him and who is holy and who must come near to him, and whoever he may choose will come near to him. Do this --Take fire holders for yourselves, Korah and his entire assembly, and put fire in them, and place incense upon them before God tomorrow, and it must occur that the man whom God will choose, he is the holy one. That is enough of you, you sons of Levi!" And Moses went on to say to Korah --"Listen, please, you sons of Levi. Is it such a little thing for you men that the God of Israel has separated you men from the assembly of Israel to present you to himself to carry on the service of God's tabernacle and to stand before the assembly to minister to them, and that he should bring you and all your brothers the sons of Levi with you near? So must you men also try to secure the priesthood? For that reason you and all your assembly who are gathering together are against God. As for Aaron, what is he that you men should murmur against him?"
Later Moses sent to call Dathan and Abiram the sons of Eliab, but they said--"We are not going to come up!" Is it so little a thing that you have brought us up out of a land flowing with milk and honey to put us to death in the wilderness, that you should also try to play the prince over us to the limit? As it is, you have not brought us into any land flowing with milk and honey, that you may give us an inheritance of field and vineyard. Is it the eyes of those men that you want to bore out? We are not going to come up!" At this Moses became very angry and said to God--"Do not turn to look at their grain offering. Not one male ass have I taken away from them, nor have I harmed one of them." Then Moses said to Korah--"You and all your assembly, be present before God, you and they and Aaron, tomorrow. And take each one his fire holder, and you men must put incense upon them and present each one his fire holder before God, 250 fire holders and you and Aaron each his fire holder." So they took each one his fire holder and put fire upon them and placed incense upon them and stood at the entrance of the tent of meeting together with Moses and Aaron. When Korah got all the assembly together against them at the entrance of the tent of meeting, then God's glory appeared to all the assembly. God now spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying: "Separate yourselves from the midst of this assembly, that I may exterminate them in an instant." At this their faces fell and said--"O God, the God of the spirits of every sort of flesh, will just one man sin and you become indignant (angry) against the entire assembly?" In turn God spoke to Moses, saying--"Speak to the assembly, saying, 'Get away from around the tabernacles of Korah, Dathan and Abiram!'" After that Moses got up and went to Dathan and Abiram, and older men of Israel went with him. Then he spoke to the assembly, saying -"Turn aside, please, from before the tents of these wicked men, and do not touch anything that belongs to them, that you may not be swept away in all their sin." Immediately they got away from before the tabernacle of Korah, Dathan and Abiram, from every side, and Dathan and Abiram came out, taking their stand at the entrance of their tents, together with their wives and their sons and their little ones. Then Moses said--"By this you will know that God has sent me to do all these deeds, that it is not of my own heart. If it is according to the death of all mankind that these people will die, and with the punishment of all mankind that punishment will be brought upon them, then it is not God that has sent me. But if it is something created that God will create, and the ground has to open its mouth and swallow up (earthquake) them and everything that belongs to them and they have to go down alive into Sheol (hell), you will then know for certain that these men have treated God disrespectfully." And it came about that as soon as he had finished speaking all these words, the ground that was under them began to be split apart. And the earth proceeded to open its mouth and swallow up them and their households and all humankind
that belonged to Korah and all the goods. So down they went, and all who belonged to them, alive into Sheol, and the earth went covering them over, so that they perished from the midst of the congregation. And all the Israelites who were round about them fled at the screaming of them, for they began to say--"We are afraid that the earth may swallow us up!" And a fire came out from God and proceeded to consume the 250 men offering incense. God now spoke to Moses, saying --"Say to Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest that he should take up the fire holders from within the conflagration (firestorm), 'And you scatter the fire over there -- for they are holy, even the fire holders of these men who sinned against their own souls. And they must make them into thin metal plates as an overlaying for the altar, because they presented them before God, so that they became holy -- and they should serve as a sign to the sons of Israel'" Accordingly Eleazar the priest took the copper fire holders, which those who had been burned up had presented, and they proceeded to beat them out into an overlaying for the altar, as a memorial for the sons of Israel, to the end that no strange man who is not of the offspring of Aaron should come near to make incense smoke before God, and no one might become like Korah and his assembly, just as God had spoken to him by means of Moses. And directly the next day the whole assembly of the sons of Israel began to murmur against Moses and Aaron, saying --"You men, you have put God's people to death." And it was about that when the assembly had congregated themselves together against Moses and Aaron, they then turned toward the tent of meeting -- and, look! the cloud covered it, and God's glory began to appear. And Moses and Aaron proceeded to come before the tent of meeting. Then God spoke to Moses, saying -- "You men, rise up from the midst of this assembly, that I may exterminate them in an instant. At this they fell upon their faces. After that Moses said to Aaron--"Take the fire holder and put fire from upon the altar in it and put on incense and go to the assembly in a hurry and make atonement for them, because the indignation has gone out from the face of God. The plague (sickness) has started!" Aaron at once took it, just as Moses had spoken, and went running into the midst of the congregation -- and look! the plague had started among the people. So he put the incense on and began making atonement for the people. And he kept standing between the dead and the living. Eventually the scourge (plague, evil) was stopped. And those dead from the scourge amounted to 14,700, aside from those dead on account of Korah. When at last Aaron returned to Moses at the entrance of the tent of meeting, the scourge had been stopped. 17 God now spoke to Moses, saying -- "Speak to the sons of Israel and take from them one rod (staff) for each paternal house from all their chieftains, by the house of their fathers, 12 rods. You will write the name of each one upon his rod. And Aaron's name you will write upon Levi's rod, because there is one rod for the head of the house of their fathers. And you must deposit them in the tent of meeting
before the Testimony, where I regularly present myself to you. And what must occur is that the man whom I shall choose, his rod will bud, and I shall certainly make subside from against me, the murmurings of the sons of Israel, which they are murmuring against you." So Moses spoke to the sons of Israel, and all their chieftains went giving him a rod for each chieftain, a rod for each chieftain, by the house of their fathers, 12 rods -- and Aaron's rod was in among their rods. Then Moses deposited the rods before God in the tent of the Testimony. And it came about the next day that when Moses went into the tent of Testimony, look! Aaron's rod for the house of Levi had budded, and it was bringing forth buds and blossoming flowers and was bearing ripe almonds. Moses then brought out all the rods from before God to all the sons of Israel, and they went looking and taking each man his own rod. Subsequently God said to Moses --"Put Aaron's rod back before the Testimony as something to be kept for a sign to the sons of rebelliousness, that their murmurings may cease from against me, that they may not die." At once Moses did just as God had ordered him. He did just so. And the sons of Israel began to say this to Moses --"Now we are bound to expire, we are bound to perish, we are all of us bound to perish. Anyone approaching, coming near to God's tabernacle, will die!" Must we end up expiring that way?" 18 And God proceeded to say to Aaron-- "You and your sons and the house of your father with you will answer for error against the sanctuary, and you and your sons with you will answer for error against your priesthood. And bring near, also, your brothers of the tribe of Levi, the clan of your father, with you, that they may be joined to you, and may minister to you, to both of you and your sons with you, before the tent of the Testimony. And they must keep their obligation to you and their obligation to the entire tent. Only to the utensils of the holy place and to the altar they must not come near that they may not die, neither they nor you men. And they must be joined to you and must keep their obligation to the tent of meeting as respects all the service of the tent, and no stranger may come near to you men. And you must keep your obligation to the holy place and your obligation to the altar, that no further indignation may occur against the sons of Israel. And I, look! I have taken your brothers, the Levites, from the among the sons of Israel, as a gift for you, as those given to God to carry on the service of the tent of meeting. And you and your sons with you should safeguard your priesthood as regards every concern of the altar and as regards what is inside the curtain -- and you men must render service. As a service of gift I shall give your priesthood, and the stranger drawing near should be put to death." And God spoke to further to Aaron--"As for me, look! I have given you the custody of the contribution made to me. Of all the holy things of the sons of Israel I have given them to you and to your sons as a portion, as an allowance to time indefinite. This should become yours out of the most holy things, out of the offering made by fire, every offering of theirs together
with every grain of theirs and every sin offering of theirs and every guilt offerings of theirs, which they will return to me. It is something most holy for you and for your sons. In a most holy place you should eat it. Every male should eat it. It should become something holy to you. And this belongs to you-- the contribution of their gift together with all the wave offerings of the sons of Israel. I have given them to you and your sons and daughters with you, as an allowance to time indefinite. Everyone clean in your house may eat it. "All the best of the oil and all the best of new wine and grain, and their 1stfruits, which they will give to God, I have given them to you. The 1st ripe fruits of all that is on their land, which they will bring to God, yours it should become. Everyone clean in your house may eat it. "Every devoted thing in Israel should become yours. "Everything opening the womb, of every sort of flesh, which they will present to God, among man and beast, should become yours. However, you should without fail redeem the 1stborn of mankind -- and the 1stborn of the unclean beast you should redeem. And with a redemption price for it from a month old upward you should redeem it, by the estimated value, 5 silver shekels by the shekel (dollar) of the holy place. It is 20 gerahs (1 shekel= 1 dollar = 20 nickels). Only the 1stborn bull or 1stborn male lamb or 1stborn goat you should not redeem. They are something holy. Their blood you should sprinkle upon the altar, and their fat you should make smoke as an offering made by fire for a restful odor to God. And their flesh should become yours. Like the breast of the wave offering and like the right leg, it should become yours. All the holy contributions, which the sons of Israel will contribute to God, I have given to you and your sons and daughters with you, as an allowance to time indefinite. It is a covenant of salt to time indefinite before God for you and your offspring with you." And God went on to say to Aaron -- "In their land you will not have an inheritance, and no share will become yours in their midst. I am your share and your inheritance in the midst of the sons of Israel. "And to the sons of Levi, look! I have given every 10th part in Israel as an inheritance in return for their service that they are carrying on, the service of the tent of meeting. And the sons of Israel should no more come near to the tent of meeting to incur sin so as to die. And the Levites themselves must carry on their service of the tent of meeting, and they are the ones who should answer for their error. It is a statute to time indefinite during your generations that in the midst of the sons of Israel they should not get possession of an inheritance. For the 10th part of the sons of Israel, which they will contribute to God as a contribution, I have given to the Levites as an inheritance. That is why I have said to them, 'In the midst of the sons of Israel they should not get possession of an inheritance.'" Then God spoke to Moses saying --"And you should speak to the Levites, and you must say to them, 'You will receive from the sons of Israel the 10th part that I have given to you from them for your inheritance, and you must contribute from it as a contribution to
God a 10th part of the 10th part. It must be reckoned to you as your contribution, like the grain of the threshing floor, and like full produce of the wine or oil press. In this way yourselves also will contribute a contribution to God from all your 10th parts that you will receive from the sons of Israel, and from them you must give the contribution to God to Aaron the priest. From all the gifts to you, you will contribute every sort of contribution to God, of the very best of it, as some holy thing from them. You must say to them--'When you contribute the best of them, then it will certainly be reckoned to the Levites as the produce of the threshing floor, and as the produce of the wine or oil press. You must eat it in every place, you and your household, because it is your wages in return for your service in the tent of meeting. You must not incur sin for it when you contribute the best from them, and you must not profane (non religious) the holy things of the sons of Israel, that you may not die. 19 And God proceeded God proceeded to speak to Moses and Aaron, saying -- "This is a statute of the law that God has commanded, saying --'Speak to the sons of Israel that they should take for you a sound red cow in which there is no defect and upon which there is no yoke has come. And you must give it to Eleazar the priest, and he must lead it forth outside the camp, and it must be slaughtered before him. Then Eleazar the priest must take some of its blood with his finger and spatter some of its blood straight toward the front of the tent of meeting 7 times. And the cow must be burned under his eyes. Its skin and its flesh and its blood together with its dung will be burned. And the priest must take cedarwood and hyssop and coccus scarlet material and throw it into the midst of the burning of the cow. And the priest must wash his garments and bathe his flesh in water, and afterward he may come into the camp, but the priest must be unclean until the evening. "'And the one who burned it will wash his garments in water and must bathe his flesh in water, and he must be unclean until the evening. "'And a clean man must gather up the ashes of the cow and deposit them outside the camp in a clean place -- and they must serve the assembly of the sons of Israel as something to be kept for the water for cleansing. It is a sin offering. And the one gathering the ashes of the cow must wash his garments and be unclean until the evening. "'And it must serve the sons of Israel and the alien resident who is residing as an alien in their midst as a statute to time indefinite. Anyone touching the corpse of any human soul must also be unclean 7 days. Such one should purify himself with it on the 3rd day, and on the 7th day he will be clean. But if he will not purify himself on the 3rd day, then on the 7th day he will not be clean. Everyone touching a corpse, the soul of whatever man may die, and who will not purify himself, has defiled God's tabernacle, and that soul must be cut off from Israel. Because the water for cleansing has not been sprinkled upon him, he continues unclean. His uncleanness is still upon him. "'This is the law in case a man should die in a tent -- Everyone coming into the tent, and everyone who is in the tent, will
be unclean 7 days, And everyone who on the open field may touch someone slain with the sword or a corpse or a bone of a man or a burial place will be unclean 7 days. And they must take for the unclean one some of the dust of the burning of the sin offering and put running water upon it in a vessel. Then a clean man must take hyssop and dip it into the water and spatter it upon the tent and all the vessels and the souls that happened to be there and upon the one who touched the bone or the slain one or the corpse or the burial place. And the clean person must spatter it upon the unclean one on the 3rd day and on the 7th day and must purify him from sin on the 7th day -- and he must wash his garments and bathe in water, and he must be clean in the evening. "'But the man who may be unclean and who will not purify himself, well that soul must be cut off from the midst of the congregation, because it is God's sanctuary that he has defiled. The water for cleansing was not sprinkled upon him. He is unclean. "'And it must serve as a statute to time indefinite for them, that the one spattering the water for cleansing should wash his garments, also the one touching the water for cleansing. He will be unclean until the evening. And anything the unclean one may touch will be unclean, and the soul who touches it will be unclean until the evening. 20 And the sons of Israel, the entire assembly, proceeded to come into the wilderness of Zin in the 1st month, and the people took up living in Kadesh. It was there that Miriam died and there that she was buried. Now there proved to be no water for the assembly, and they began to congregate themselves against Moses and Aaron. And the people went quarreling with Moses and saying --"If only we had expired when our brothers expired before God! And why have you men brought God's congregation into this wilderness for us and our beasts of burden (animals) to die there? And why have you conducted us up out Egypt to bring us into this evil place? It is no place of seed and figs and vines and pomegranates, and there is no water to drink." Then Moses and Aaron came from before the congregation to the entrance of the tent of meeting and fell upon their faces, and God's glory began to appear to them. Then God spoke to Moses, said--"Take the rod and call the assembly together, you and Aaron your brother, and you must speak to the crag before their eyes that it may indeed give its water -- and you must bring out water for them from the crag and give the assembly and their beasts of burden drink." So Moses took the rod from before God, just as he had commanded him. After that Moses and Aaron called the congregation together before the crag, and he proceeded to say to them -- "Hear, now, you rebels! Is it from this crag that we shall bring out water for you?" With that Moses lifted his hand up and struck the crag with his rod twice -- and much water began to come out, and the assembly and their animals began to drink. Later God said to Moses and Aaron --"Because you did not show faith in me to sanctify
me before the eyes of the sons of Israel, therefore you will not bring this congregation into the land that I shall certainly give them." These are the waters of Meribah, because the sons of Israel quarreled with God, so that he was sanctified among them. Subsequently Moses sent messengers from Kadesh to the king of Edom-- "This is what your brother Israel has said, 'You yourself well know all the hardship that has overtaken us. And our fathers proceeded to go down to Egypt, and we continued to dwell in Egypt many days, and the Egyptians began doing harm to us and our fathers. Finally we cried out to God and he heard our voice and sent an angel and brought us out of Egypt -- and here we are in Kadesh, a city at the extremity of your territory. Let us pass, please, through your land. We shall not pass through a field or a vineyard, and we shall not drink the water of a well. On the king's road we shall march. We shall not bend toward the right or the left, until we shall pass through your territory.'" However, Edom said to him--"You must not pass through me, for fear I may come out with the sword to meet you." In turn the sons of Israel said to him--"By the highway we shall go up and if I and my livestock should drink your water, I shall also certainly give the value of it (pay for it). I want nothing more than to pass through on my feet." Still he said--"You must not pass through." With that Edom came on out to encounter him with a great many people and a strong hand. So Edom refused to grant Israel to pass through his territory. Hence Israel turned away from him. And the sons of Israel, the entire assembly, proceeded to pull away from Kadesh and come to Mount Hor. Then God said this to Moses and Aaron in Mount Hor by the border of the land of Edom -- "Aaron will be gathered to his people, for he will not enter into the land that I shall certainly give to the sons of Israel, on the ground that you men rebelled against my order respecting the waters of Meribath. Take Aaron and Eleazar his son and bring them up into the Mount Hor. And strip Aaron of his garments, and you must clothe with them Eleazar his son -- and Aaron will be gathered and must die there." So Moses did just as God had commanded -- and before the eyes of all the assembly they went climbing Mount Hor. Then Moses stripped Aaron of his garments and clothed Eleazar his son with them, after which Aaron died there on the top of the mountain. And Moses and Eleazar came on down from the mountain. And all the assembly got to see that Aaron had expired, and all the house of Israel continued weeping for Aaron for 30 days. 21 Now the Canaanite the king of Arad, who l dwelt in the Negeb, got to hear that Israel had come by the way of Atharim, and he began to fight with Israel and carry away some of them as captives. Consequently Israel made a vow to God and said--"If you will without fail give this people into my hand, I shall also certainly devote their cities to destruction." So God listened to Israel's voice and gave the Canaanites over -- and they devoted them and their cities to destruction. Hence they called the name of the place Hormah.
While they continued treking from Mount Hor by the way of the Red Sea to go around the land of Edom, the soul of the people began tiring out because of the way. And the people kept speaking against God and Moses --"Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no bread and no water, and our soul has come to abhor the contemptible bread." So God sent poisonous serpents among the people, and they kept biting the people, so that many people of Israel died. Finally the people came to Moses and said --"We have sinned, because we have spoken against God and against you. Intercede with God that he may remove the serpents from upon us." And Moses went pleading in behalf of the people. Then God said to Moses--"Make for yourself a fiery snake and place it upon a signal pole. And it must occur that when anyone has been bitten, he then has to look at it, and to must keep alive. Moses at once made a serpent of copper and placed it upon the signal pole, and it did occur that if a serpent had bitten a man and he gazed at the copper serpent, he then kept alive. After that the sons of Israel pulled away and encamped in Oboth. Then they pulled away from Oboth and encamped in Iyeabarim, in the wilderness that is toward the front of Moab, toward the rising of the sun. From there they pulled away and went camping in the torrent valley of Zered. From there they pulled away and went camping in the region of the Arnon, which is in wilderness that extends from the border of the Amorites, for the Arnon is the boundary of Moab, between Moab and the Amorites. That is why it is said in the book of the Wars of God -- "Vaheb in Suphah and the torrent valleys of Arnon, and the mouth of the torrent valleys, which has bent itself toward the seat of Ar and has leaned against the border of Moab." Next from there on to Beer. This is the well about which God said to Moses--"Gather the people, and let me give them water." At that time Israel proceeded to sing this song -- "Spring up, O well! Respond to it you people! A well, princes dug it! The nobles of the people excavated it. With a commander's staff, with their own staffs." Then from the wilderness on to Mattanah. And from Mattanah on to Nahaliel, and from Nahaliel on to Bamoth. And from Bamoth on to the valley that is in the field of Moab, at the head of Pisgah, and it projects over toward the face of Jeshimon. Israel now sent messengers to Sihon the king of the Amoirtes, saying--"Let me pass through your land. We shall not turn off into a field or vineyard. We shall drink water of no well. On the King's road we shall march until we pass through your territory." And Sihon did not allow Israel to pass through his territory, but Sihon gathered all his people and went out to meet Israel in the wilderness, and came to Jahaz and began fighting with Israel. At that Israel struck him with the edge of the sword and took possession of his land from the Arnon to the Jabbok, near the sons of Ammon -- because
Jazer is the border of the sons of Ammon. So Israel took all these cities, and Israel began dwelling in all the cities of the Amorites, in Heshbon and all its dependent towns. For Heshbon was the city of Sihon. He was the king of the Amorites, and it was he who fought with the king of Moab formerly and went taking all his land as far as the Arnon. That is why the sayers of mock verses would say -- "Come to Heshbon. Let the city of Sihon be built and be proved firmly set up. For a fire has come out of Heshbon, a flame from the town of Sihon. It has consumed (burned) Ar of Moab, the owners of the high places of the Arnon. Woe (sorrow) to you, Moab! You will certainly perish, O people of Chemosh! He will certainly give his sons as escaped ones and his daughters in the captivity to the king of the Amorites, Sihon. So let us shoot at them. Heshbon will certainly perish up to Dibon, and the women up to Nophah, the men up to Medeba. And Israel began to dwell in the land of Amorites. Then Moses sent some to spy on Jazer. So they captured its dependent towns and dispossessed the Amorites who were there. After that they turned and went up by the way of Bashan. At this Og the king of Bashan came out to meet them, he and all his people, to the battle of Edrei. God now said to Moses --"Do not be afraid of him, for into your hand I shall certainly give him and all his people and his land -- and you must do to him just as you did to Sihon, the king of the Amorites, who used to dwell in Heshbon. So they went striking him and his sons and all his people, until there was no survivor remaining to him -- and they went taking possession of the land. 22 Then the sons of Israel pulled away and encamped on the desert plains of Moab across the Jordan from Jericho. And Balak the son of Zippor got to see all that Israel had done to the Amorites. And Moab became very frightened at the people, because they were many -- and Moab began to feel sickening dread of the sons of Israel. And Moab proceeded to say to the older men of Midian--"Now this congregation will lick up all our surroundings like the bull licking up the green growth of the field." And Balak the son of Zippor was king of Moab at that particular time. He now sent messengers to Balaam the son of Beor at Pethor, which is by the River of the land of the sons of his people, to call him saying --"Look! A people has come out of Egypt. Look! They have covered the earth as far as one can see, and they are dwelling right in front of me. And now do come, please, do curse this people for me, for they are mighitier than I am. Perhaps I may be able to strike them and I may drive them out of the land -- for I well know that the one whom you bless is a blessed one and the one whom you curse is cursed." So the older men of Moab and the older men of Midian traveled with the payments for divination (seeking knowledge of the future) in their hands and went to Balaam and spoke to him Balak's words. At that he said to them -- "Lodge here
tonight and I shall certainly return you word just as God may speak to me." Accordingly the princes of Moab stayed with Balaam. Then God came to Balaam and said--"Who are these men with you?" So Balaam said to the true God -- "Balak the son of Zippor, the king of Moab, has sent to me, saying, 'Look! The people who are coming out of Egypt, and they go covering the earth as far as the eye can see, now do come, do execrate (curse, denounce) them for me. Perhaps I may be able to fight against them and I shall certainly drive them out.'" But God said to Balaam --"You must not go with them. You must not curse the people, for they are blessed." After that Balaam got up in the morning and said to the princes of Balak --"Go to your country, because God has refused to let me go with you." So the princes Moab got up and came to Balak and said--"Balaam has refused to come with us." However, Balak sent again other princes in greater number and more honorable than the former. In turn they came to Balaam and said to him--"This is what Balak the son of Zippor has said, 'Do not be detained, please, from coming to me. For I shall without fail honor you greatly, and everything you may say to me I shall do. So do come, please. Do denounce this people for me.'" But Balaam answered and said to the servants of Balak--"If Balak were to give me his house full of silver and gold, I should not be able to pass beyond the order of Lord my Jehovah, so as to do something small or great. And now you men also stay here, please, tonight that I may know what further God will speak with me." Then God came to Balaam by night and said to him --"If it is to call you that the men have come, get up, go with them. But only the word that I shall speak to you is what you may speak." After that Balaam got up in the morning and saddled his she-ass and went with the princes of Moab. And the anger of God began to blaze because he was going -- and God's angel proceeded to station himself in the road to resist him. And he was riding upon his she-ass, and 2 attendants of his were with him. And the ass got to see God's angel stationed in the road with his drawn sword in his hand -- and the ass tried to turn aside from the road that she might go into the field, but Balaam began to strike the ass in order to turn her away from the road. And God's angel kept standing in the narrow way between the vineyards, with a stone wall on this side and a stone wall on that side. And the she-ass kept seeing God's angel and began to squeeze herself against the wall and so to squeeze Balaam's foot against the wall -- and he went beating her some more. God's angel now passed by again and stood in a narrow place, where there was no way to turn aside to the right or the left. When the ass got to see God's angel she now lay down under Balaam, so that Balaam's anger blazed, and he kept beating the ass with this staff. Finally God opened the mouth of the ass and she said to Balaam --"What have I done to you so that you have beaten me these 3 times?" At this Balaam said to the ass --"It is because you have dealt ruthlessly with me. If only there were a sword in my hand, for
now I should have killed you!" Then the she-ass said to Balaam --"Am I not your she-ass that you have ridden upon all your life long until today? Have I ever been used to do to you this way?" To which he said, "No!" And God proceeded to uncover Balaam's eyes, so that he saw God's angel stationed in the road with his drawn sword in his hand. At once he bowed low and prostrated himself on his face. Then God's angel said to him--"Why have you beaten your she-ass these 3 times? Look! I-I have come out to offer resistance, because your way has been reckless against my will. And the she-ass got to see me and tried to turn aside before me these 3 times. Supposing she had not turned aside from before me! For by now even you I should have killed, but her I should have saved alive." At this Balaam said to God's angel --"I have sinned, because I did not know that it was you stationed in the road to meet me. Now, if it is bad in your eyes, let me go my way back." But the God's angel said to Balaam--"Go with the men, and nothing but the word I shall speak to you is what you may speak." And Balaam continued going with the princes of Balak. When Balak got the hear that Balaam had come, he at once went out to meet him at the city of Moab, which is on the bank of the Arnon, which is on the extremity of the territory. Then Balak said to Balaam --"Have I not for a fact sent to you to call you? Why did you not come to me? Am I not really and truly able to honor you?" At this Balaam said to Balak --"Here I have come to you now. Shall I be able at all to speak something? The word that God will place in my mouth is what I shall speak." So Balaam went with Balak and they came to Kiriathhuzoth. Balak proceeded to sacrifice cattle and sheep and to send some to Balaam and the princes who were with him. And it came about in the morning that Balak went taking Balaam and bringing him up to Bamothbaal, that he might see from there the whole of the people. 23 Then Balaam said to Balak--"Build for me on this spot 7 altars and make ready for me on this spot 7 bulls and 7 rams." Balak immediately did just as Balaam had spoken. After that Balak and Balaam offered up a bull and a ram on each altar. And Balaam went on to say to Balak --"Station yourself by your burnt offering, and let me go. Perhaps God will get in touch, and meet with me. In that case whatever he will show me, I shall certainly tell you." So he went to a bare hill. When God got in touch with Balaam, he then said to Him--"I set the 7 altars in rows, and I proceeded to offer up a bull and a ram on each altar." Accordingly God put word in the mouth of Balaam and said --"Return to Balak, and this is what you will speak." So he returned to him, and look! he and all the princes of Moab were stationed by his burnt offering. Then he took up his proverbial (famous) utterance and said --"From Aram Balak the king Moab tried to conduct me, From the mountains of the east -- Do come, do curse Jacob for me. Yes, do come, do denounce Israel.
How could I execrate (loathe) those whom God has not execrated? And how could I denounce (execrate, curse) those whom God has not denounced? For from the top of the rocks I see them, And from the hills I behold them. There as a people they keep tabernacling isolated, and among the nations they do not reckon themselves. Who has numbered the dust particles of Jacob, And who has counted the 4th part of Israel? Let my soul die the death of the upright ones. And let my end turn out afterward like theirs." At this Balak said to Balaam--"What have you done to me? It was in order to execrate my enemies that I took you, and here you have blessed them to the limit." In turn he answered and said --"It is not whatever God may put in my mouth that I should take care to speak?" Then Balak said to him--"Do come, please, with me to another place from which you can see them. Only the extremity of them you will see, and you will not see all of them. And execrate (denounce) them for me from there." So he took him to the field of Zophim, to the top of Pisgah, and proceeded to build 7 altars and to offer up a bull and a ram on each altar. After that he said to Balak--"Station yourself here by your burnt offering, and as for me, let me get in touch with him there." Subsequently God got in touch with Balaam and put a word in his mouth and said--"Return to Balak, and this is what you will speak." So he came to him, and look! he was stationed by his burnt offering and the princes of Moab with him. Then Balak said to him--"What has God spoken?" At this he took up his proverbial utterance and said --" Get up, Balak and listen. Do give ear to me, O son of Zippor. God is not a man that he should tell lies, Neither a son of mankind that he should feel regret. Has he himself said it and will he not do it, And has he spoken and will he not carry it out? Look! I have been taken to bless, And He has blessed, and I shall not reverse it. He has not looked upon any uncanny (unnatural) power against Jacob, And no trouble has he seen against Israel. God his Lord is with him, And the loud hailing of a king is in his midst. God is bringing them out of Egypt. The swift course like that of a wild bull is his. For there is no unlucky spell against Jacob, Nor any divination against Israel. At this time it may be said respecting Jacob and Israel, 'What has God worked out!' Behold, a people will get up like a lion, And like the lion it will lift itself up. It will not lie down until it may eat prey, And the blood of slain ones it will drink. At this Balak said to Balaam--"If, on the one hand, you cannot execrate him at all, then,
on the other hand, you should not bless him at all. In turn Balaam answered and said to Balak --"Did I not speak to you, saying, 'All that God will say is what I shall do'?" Then Balak said to Balaam --"O come, please. Let me take you to still another place. Perhaps it will be right in the eyes of the true God so that you will certainly execrate him for me from there." With that Balak took Balaam to the top of Peor, which looks toward Jeshimon. Then Balaam said to Balak--"Build for me on this spot 7 altars and make ready for me on this spot 7 bulls and 7 rams." So Balak did just as Balaam had said, and he went offering up a bull and a ram on each altar. 24 When Balaam got to see that it was good in the eyes of God to bless Israel, he did not go away as at the other times to come upon any unlucky omens, but he directed his face to the wilderness. When Balaam raised his eyes and saw Israel tabernacling by his tribes, then the spirit of God came to be upon him. Hence he took up his proverbial utterance and said --"The utterance of Balaam the son of Beor, and the utterance of the able-bodied man with the eye unsealed (opened), The utterance of the one hearing the sayings of God, who got to see a vision of Almighty. While falling down with the eyes uncovered (opened) --How good looking are your tents, O Jacob, your tabernacles, O Israel! Like torrent valleys they have extended a long way, like gardens by the river. Like aloe plants that God has planted, like cedars by the waters, Water keeps trickling from his 2 leather buckets, And his seed is by many waters. His king also will be higher than Agag, And his kingdom will be lifted up. God is bringing him out of Egypt -- The swift course of a wild bull is his. He will consume (burn) the nations, his oppressors, And their bones he will gnaw (chew), and he will break them to pieces with his arrows. He bowed down, he lay down like the lion, And like a lion, who dares rouse him? Those blessing you are the ones blessed, And those cursing you are the ones cursed." At that Balak's anger blazed against Balaam and he clapped his hands, and Balak went on to say to Balaam--"It was to execrate (loathe) my enemies that I called you, and look! you have blessed them to the limit these 3 times. And now run your way off to your place. I had said to myself I was without fail going to honor you, but, look! God has held you back from honor." In turn Balaam said to Balak --"Was it not also to your messengers whom you sent to me that I spoke, saying, 'If Balak were to give me his house full of silver and gold, I should not be able to pass beyond the order of God so as to do something good or bad out of my own heart. Whatever God may speak is what I shall speak'? And now here I am
going away to my people. Do come, let me advise you what this people will do to our people afterward in the end of the days." So he took up his proverbial (famous) utterance and said --"The utterance of Balaam the son of Beor, and the utterance of the able-bodied man with the eye unsealed (open), The utterance of the one hearing the sayings of God, And the one knowing the knowledge of the Most High -- A vision of Almighty he got to see While falling down with the eyes uncovered (opened)-- I shall see him, but not now, -- I shall behold him, but not near. A star will certainly step forth out of Jacob, And a scepter will indeed rise out of Israel. And he will certainly break apart the temples of Moab's head And the cranium (skull) of all the sons of tumult (uproar) of war. And Edom must become a possession, Yes, Seir must become the possession of his enemies, While Israel is displaying his courage. And out of Jacob one will go suppressing, And he must destroy any survivor from the city. When he go to see Amalek, he carried further his proverbial utterance and went on to say --"Amalek was the 1st one of the nations, But his end afterward will be even his perishing." When he got to see the Kenites, he carried further his proverbial utterance and went to say--"Durable is your dwelling, and set on the crag (rock) is your abode (home). But there will come to be one to burn Kain down. How long will it be till Assyria will carry you away captive?' And he carried further his proverbial utterance and went on to say--"Woe! Who will survive when God causes it? And there will be ships from the coast of Kittim, and they will certainly afflict (trouble, oppress) Eber. But he too will eventually perish. After that Balaam got up and went and returned to his place. And Balak also went his own way. 25 Now Israel was dwelling in Shittim. Then the people started to have immoral relations with the daughters of Moab. And the women came calling the people to the sacrifices of their gods, and the people began to eat and to bow down to their gods. So Israel attached itself to the Baal of Peor -- and the anger of God began to blaze (burn) against Israel. Hence God said to Moses--"Take all the head ones of the people, and expose them to God toward the sun, that the burning anger of God may turn back (away) from Israel." Then Moses said to the judges of Israel --"Each one of you kill his men who have an attachment with the Baal of Peor." But look! a man of the sons of Israel came, and he was
bringing near to his brothers a Midianite woman before Moses eyes, and before the eyes of all the assembly of the sons of Israel, while they were weeping at the entrance of tent of meeting. When Phinehas the son of Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest caught sight of it-- he at once got up from the midst of the assembly, and took a lance (spear) in his hand. Then he went after the man of Israel into the vaulted tent and pierced both of them through--the man of Israel and the woman through her genital parts. At that the scourge (plague, evil) was stopped from upon the sons of Israel. And those who died from the scourge amounted to 24,000. Then God spoke to Moses, saying --"Phinehas the son of Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest has turned back my wrath (fury) from upon the sons of Israel by his tolerating no rivalry at all toward me in the midst of them, so that I have not exterminated the sons of Israel in my insistence on exclusive (sole) devotion. For that reason say, 'Here I am giving him my covenant of peace. And it must serve as the covenant of a priesthood to time indefinite for him and his offspring after him, due to the fact that he tolerated no rivalry toward his God and proceeded to make atonement (begging for forgiveness) for the sons of Israel.'" Incidentally the name of the fatally struck Israelite man who was fatally struck with the Midianitess was Zimri the son of Salu, a chieftain of a paternal house of the Simeonites. And the name of the Midianite woman fatally struck was Cozbi the daughter of Zur -- he was the head one of the clans of a paternal house in Midian. Later God spoke to Moses, saying --"Let there be a harassing of the Midianites, and you men must strike them, because they are harassing you with their deeds of cunning that they committed against you cunningly in the affair of Peor and in the affair of Cozbi the daughter of a chieftain of Midian, their sister who was fatally struck in the day of the scourge over the affair of Peor. 26 And it came about after the scourge (affliction, bane), that Jehovah went on to say this to Moses and Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest --"Take the sum of the whole assembly of the sons of Israel from 20 years of age and upward, according to the house of their fathers, all those going out to the army in Israel." And Moses and Eleazar the priest proceeded to speak with them in the desert plains of Moab by the Jordan of Jericho, saying -- "Take the sum of the whole assembly of the sons of Israel from 20 years of age and upward, just as God had commanded Moses. Now the sons of Israel who went out of the land of Egypt were -- Reuben, Israel's 1stborn, Reuben's sons--
of Hanoch the family of the Hanochites--
of Pallu the family of the Pallusites--
of Hezron the family of the Hezronites--
of Carmi the family of the Carmites -- These were the families of Reubenites, and their registered ones amounted to 43,730. And the son of Pallu was Eliab. The sons of Eliab -- Nemuel and Dathan and Abiram. This Dathan and Abiram were summoned ones of assembly, who engaged in a struggle against Moses and Aaron in the assembly of Korah, when they engaged in a struggle against God. Then the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up.
As for Korah, he died at the death of the assembly when the fire consumed (burned) 250 men. And they came to be a symbol. However, the sons of Korah did not die. The sons of Simeon by their families--
Of Nemuel the family of the Neumelites--
of Jamin the family of the Jaminites--
of Jachin the family of the Jachinites--
of Jerah the family of the Jerahites--
of Shaul the family of the Shaulites. These were the families of the Simeonites --22,200.
Sons of Gad by their families --
of Zephon the family of the Zephonites--
of Haggi the family of the Haggites--
of Shunni the family of the Shunites--
of Ozni the family of the Oznites--
Of Eri the family of the Erites--
of Arod the family of the Arodites--
of Areli the family of the Arelites-- These were the
families of the sons of Gad, of their registered ones, 40,500.
The sons of Judah were Er and Onan. However, Er and Onan died in the land of Canaan. And the sons of Judah came to be, by their families--
Of Shelah the family of the Shelanites--
of Perez the family of the Perezites--
of Zerah the family of the Zerahites--
And the sons of Perez came to be --
Of Hezron the family of the Hezronites--
of Hamul the family of the Hamulites --
These were the families of Judah, of their registered ones--76,500.
The sons of Issachar by their families were--
Of Tola the family of the Tolaites--
of Puvah the family of the Punites--
of Jashub the family of the Jashubites--
of Shimron the family of Shimronites--
These were the families of Issachar, of their registered ones--64,300.
The sons of Zebulun by their families were--
Of Sered the family of the Seredites--
of Elon the family of the Elonites--
of Jahleel the family of the Jahleelites--
These were the families of Zebulunites, of their registered ones--60,500.
The sons of Joseph by their families were Manasseh and Ephraim.
The sons of Manasseh were--
Of Machir the family of the Machirites.
And Machir became father to Gilead.
Of Gilead the family of the Gileadites.
These were the sons of Gilead--
Of Iezer the family of the Iezerites--
of Helek the family of the Helekites-
of Asriel the family of the Asrielites--
of Shechem the family of the Shechemites--
of Hepher the family of the Hepherites--
Now Zelophehad the son of Hepher proved to have no sons, but daughters, and the names of daughters of Zelophehad were Mahlah and Noah, Hoglah, Milcah and Tirzah. These were the families of Manasseh, and their registered ones were 52,700.
These were the sons of Ephraim by their families--
Of Shuthelah the family of the Shuthelahites--
of Becher the family of the Becherites--
of Tahan the family of the Tahanites--
And these were the sons of Shuthelah--
Of Eran the family of the Eranites.
These were the families of the sons of Ephraim, of their registered ones--32,500. These were the sons of Joseph by their families.
the sons of Benjamin by their families were--
Of Bela the family of the Belaites--
of Ashbel the family of the Ashbelites--
of Ahiram the family of the Ahiramites-
of Shephupham the family of the Shuphamites--
of Hupham the family of theHuphamites--
The sons of Bela came to be Ard and Naaman--
Of Ard the family of the Ardites--
of Naaman the family of the Naamites.
These were the sons of Benjamin by their families, and their registered ones were 45,600.
These were the sons of Dan by their families:
Of Shuham the family of the Shuhamiters.
These were the families of Dan by their families.
All the families of the Shuhamites,
of their registered ones were 64,400.
The sons of Asher by their families were --
Of Imnah the family of the Imnites--
of Ishvi the family of the Ishvites--
of Beriah the family of the Beriites--
of the sons of Beriah--
Of Heber the family of the Heberites--
of Malchiel the family of the Malchielites.
And the name of the Asher's daughter was Serah.
These were the families of the sons of Asher,
of their registered ones--53,400.
The sons of Naphtali by their families were--
Of Jahzeel the family of the Jahzeelites --
of Guni the family of the Gunites--
of Jezer the family of the Jezerites--
of Shillem the family of the Shillemites.
These were the families of Naphtali by their families,
and their registered ones were 45,400.
These were the registered ones of the sons of Israel--601,730.
After that God spoke to Moses, said--"To these the land should be apportioned for an inheritance by the number of the names. According to the great number you should increase one's inheritance, and according to the fewness--you should reduce one's inheritance. Each one's inheritance should be given in proportion to his registered ones. Only by the lot should the land be apportioned. According to the names of the tribes of their fathers they should get an inheritance. By the determination of the lot one's inheritance should be apportioned between the many and the few."
Now these were the registered ones of the Levites by their families--
Of Gershon the family of the Gershonites--
of Kohath the family of the Kohathites--
of Merari the family of the Merarites.
These were the families of Levites. the family of Libnites,
the family of Hebronites,
the family of the Mahlites,
the family of the Mushites,
the family of Korahites.
And Kohath became father to Amran.
And the name of Amram's wife was Jochebed, Levi's daughter, whom his wife bore to Levi in Egypt. In time she bore to Amram Aaron, Moses and Miriam their sister. Then there were born to Aaron -- Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar. But Nadab and Abihu died for their presenting illegimate fire before God. And their registered ones amounted to 23,000, all males from a month old and upward. For they did not get registered in among the sons of Israel, because no inheritance
was to be given to them in among the sons of Israel. These were the ones registered by Moses and Eleazar the priest when they registered the sons of Israel in the desert plains of Moab the Jordan at Jericho. But among these there did not prove to be a man of those registered by Moses and Aaron the priest when they registered the sons of Israel in the wilderness of Sinai. For God had said concerning them --"They will die without fail in the wilderness." So there was not left of them a man, except Caleb the son of Jephunneh and Joshua the son of Nun. 27 Then the daughters of Zelophehad the son of Hepher the son of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh, of the families of Manasseh the son of Joseph, came near. These were the names of his daughters Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah and Tirzah. And they proceeded to stand before Moses and before the chieftains and all the assembly at the entrance of the tent of meeting, saying--"Our father has died in the wilderness, and yet he did not prove to be in among the assembly, that is, those who ranged themselves against God in the assembly of Korah, but for his own sin he has died, and he did not get to have any sons. Why should the name of our father be taken away from the midst of his family because he had no son? O give us a possession in the midst of our father's brothers." At that Moses presented their case before God. God then said this to Moses--"The daughters of Zelophehad are speaking right. By all means you should give them the possession of an inheritance in the midst of their father's brothers, and you must cause their father's inheritance to pass to them. And to the sons of Israel you should speak, saying, 'In case any man should die without having a son, you must then cause his inheritance to pass to his daughter. But if he has no daughter, then you must give the inheritance to his brothers. A nd if he has no brothers then he must give inheritance to his father's brothers (uncles). But if his father has no brothers then give inheritance to his blood relation who is closest to him of his family, and he must take possession of it. And it must serve as a statute (regulation) by judicial decision for the sons of Israel, just as God has commanded Moses.'" Subsequently God said to Moses--"Go up into this mountain of Abarim and see the land that I shall certainly give the sons of Israel. When you have seen it, then you must be gathered to your people, yes, you, just as Aaron your brother was gathered, inasmuch as you men rebelled against my order in the wilderness of Zin at the quarreling of the assembly, in relation to sanctifying me by the waters before their eyes. These are the waters of Meribah at Kadesh in the widerness of Zin." Then Moses spoke to God, saying--"Let God the Lord of the spirits of all sorts of flesh appoint over the assembly a man who will go out before them and who will come in before them, and who will bring them out, and who will bring them in, that God's assembly may not become like sheep that have no shepherd." So God said to Moses -- "Take for yourself Joshua the son of Nun, a man in whom there
is spirit, and you must lay your hand upon him, and you must stand him before Eleazar the priest and before all the assembly, and you must commission him before their eyes. You must put some of your dignity upon him, in order that all the assembly of the sons of Israel may listen to him. And it is before Eleazar the priest that he will stand, and he must inquire in his behalf by the judgment of the Urim before God. At his order they will go out and at his order they will come in, he and all the sons of Israel with him and all the assembly." And Moses proceeded to do just as God had commanded him. Accordingly he took Joshua and stood him before Eleazar the priest and before all the assembly and laid his hands upon him and commissioned him, just as God had spoken by means of Moses. 28 And God spoke further to Moses, saying -- "Command the sons of Israel, and you must say to them, 'You should take care to present it to me my offering, my bread, for my offering made by fire as a restful odor to me, at their appointed times.' "And you must say to them, 'This is the offering made by fire that you will present to God -- 2 sound year- old male lambs a day as a burnt offering constantly. The 1 male lamb you will render up in the morning, and the other male lamb you will render up between the 2 evenings, together with the 10th of an ephah (1/10 of 22 liter is 2.2 liter) of fine flour as a grain offering moistened with the 4th of a hin (1 hin is 3.67 liter so 1/4 of a hin is 0.92 liter = Approx. 4 cups) of beaten oil -- the constant burnt offering which was rendered up at Mount Sinai as a restful odor, an offering made by fire to God, along with its drink offering, the 4th of a hin to each male lamb. Pour out in the holy place the drink offering of intoxicating liquor to God. And you will render up the other male lamb between the 2 evenings. With the same grain offering as of the morning and with its same drink offering you will render it up as an offering made by fire, of a restful odor to God. "'However, on the sabbath day there will be 2 sound year old male lambs and two 10th measures of fine flour as a grain offering moistened with oil, together with its drink offering, as a sabbath burnt offering on its sabbath, along with the constant burnt offering and its drink offering. "'And at the commencements of your months you people will present as a burnt offering to God 2 young bulls and 1 ram, 7 sound male lambs each 1 year old, and three 10th measures of fine flour as a grain offering moistened with oil for each bull and two 10th measures of fine flour as a grain offering moistened with oil for the one ram, and a 10th measure of fine flour respectively as a grain offering moistened with oil for each male lamb, as a burnt offering, a restful odor, an offering made by fire to God. As their drink offerings there should go 1/2 a hin (11. liter) of wine for a bull, and a 1/3 of hin (approx. 7.33 liter) or the ram and a 4th of hin (approx. 0.92 liter) for a male lamb. This is the monthly burnt offering in its month of the months of the year. Also, 1 kid of the goat should be rendered up as a sin offering to God in addition to the constant burnt offering together with its drink offering. "'And in the 1st month, on the 14th day of the
month, will be God's passover. And on the 15th day of this month will be a festival. 7 days unfermented cakes will be eaten. On the 1st day there will be a holy convention. No sort of laborious work must you do. And you must present as an offering made by fire, a burnt offering to God, 2 young bulls and 1 ram and 7 male lambs each a year old. They should prove to be sound ones for you. And as their grain offerings of fine flour moistened with oil you will render up three 10th measures for a bull and two 10th measures for the ram. You will render up a 10th measure respectively for each male lamb of the 7 male lambs -- and 1 goat of sin offering to make atonement for you. Aside from the morning burnt offering, which is for the constant burnt offering, you will render these up. The same as these you will render up daily for the 7 days as bread, an offering made by fire, of a restful odor to God. Along with the constant burnt offering it should be rendered, and its drink offering. And on the 7th day you should hold a holy convention. No sort of laborious work must you do. "'And on the day of the 1st ripe fruits, when you present a new grain offering to God, in your feast of weeks you should hold a holy convention. No sort of laborious work must you do. And you must present as a burnt offering for a restful odor to God 2 young bulls, 1 ram, 7 male lambs each 1 year old and as their grain offering of fine flour moistened with oil three 10th measures for each bull, two 10th measures for the one ram. a 10th measure respectively for each male lamb of the 7 male lambs, 1 kid of the goat to make atonement for you. Aside from the constant burnt offering and its grain offering you will render them up. They should prove to be sound ones for you, together with their drink offerings. 29 "'And in the 7th month, on the 1st day of the month, you should hold a holy convention. No sort of laborious work must you do. It should prove to be a day of the trumpet blast for you. And you must render up as a burnt offering for a restful odor to God 1 young bull, 1 ram, 7 male lambs each 1 year old, sound ones, and their grain offering of fine flour moistened with oil, three 10th measures for the bull, two 10th measures for the ram, and one 10th measure for each male lamb of the 7 male lambs -- and 1 male kid of the goats as a sin offering to make atonement for you, aside from the monthly burnt offering and its grain offering and the constant burnt offering and its grain offering, together with their drink offerings, according to the regular procedure for them, as a restful odor, an offering made by fire to God. "'And on the 10th of this 7th month you should hold a holy convention, and you must afflict your souls. No sort of work must you do. And you must present as a burnt offering to God, as a restful odor, 1 young bull, 1 ram, 7 male lambs each 1 year old. They should prove to be sound ones for you. And as their grain offering of fine flour moistened with oil three 10th measures for the bull, two 10th measures for the 1 ram, a 10th measures respectively for each male
lamb of the 7 male lambs -- 1 kid of the goats as a sin offering aside from the sin offering of atonement and the constant burnt offering and its grain offering, together with their drink offerings. "'And on the 15th day of the 7th month you should hold a holy convention. No sort of laborious work must you do, and you must celebrate a festival to God 7 days. And you must present as a burnt offering, an offering made by fire, of a restful odor to God, 13 young bulls, 2 rams, 14 male lambs each 1 year old. They should prove to be sound ones. And as their grain offering of fine flour moistened with oil three 10th measures for each bull of the 13 bulls, two 10th measures for each ram of the 2 rams, and a 10th measure for each male lamb of the 14 male lambs, and 1 kid of the goats as a sin offering, aside from the constant burnt offering, its grain offering and its drink offering. "'And on the 2nd day 12 young bulls, 2 rams, 14 male lambs each 1 year old, sound ones -- and their grain offering and their drink offerings for the bulls, the rams and the male lambs by their number according to the regular procedure, and 1 kid of the goats as a sin offering, aside from the constant burnt offering and its grain offering, together with their drink offerings. "'And on the 3rd day 11 bulls, 2 rams, 14 male lambs each 1 year old, sound ones-- and their grain offering and their drink offerings for the bulls, the rams and the male lambs by their number according to the regular procedure -- and one goat as a sin offering, aside from the constant burnt offering, and its grain offering and drink offering. "'And on the 4th day-- 10 bulls, 2 rams, 14 male lambs each 1 year old, sound (healthy) ones -- their grain offering and their drink offerings for the bulls, the rams and the male lambs by their number according to the regular procedure, and 1 kid (young) goats as a sin offering, aside from the constant burnt offering, its grain offering and its drink offering. "And on the 5th day--9 bulls, 2 rams, 14 male lambs each 1 year old, sound ones, their grain offering and their drink offerings for the bulls, the rams and the male lambs by their number according to the regular procedure, and 1 goat as a sin offering, aside from the constant burnt offering, and its grain offering and its drink offering. "'And on the 6th day -- 8 bulls, 2 rams, 14 male lambs each 1 year old, healthy ones, and their grain offering and their drink offerings for the bulls, the rams and the male lambs by their number according to the regular procedure, and 1 goat as a sin offering, aside from the constant burnt offering, its grain offering and its drink offerings. "'And on the 7th day-- 7 bulls, 2 rams, 14 male lambs, each 1 year old, sound ones, and their grain offering and their drink offerings for the bulls, the rams and the male lambs by their number according to the regular procedure for them, and one goat as a sin offering, aside from the constant burnt offering, its grain offering and its drink offering, "'And on the 8th day you should hold a solemn assembly. No sort of laborineous work
must you do. And you must present as a burnt offering, an offering made by fire, of a restful odor to God, one bull, one ram, 7 male lambs each a year old, sound ones, and their grain offering and their drink offerings for the bull, the ram and the male lambs by their number according to the regular procedure -- and one goat as a sin offering, aside from the constant burnt offering and its grain offering and its drink offering. "'These you will render up to God at your seasonal festivals, besides your vow offerings and your voluntary offerings as your burnt offerings and your grain offerings and your drink offerings and your communion sacrifices.'" And Moses proceeded to talk to the sons of Israel according to everything that God had commanded Moses. 30 Then Moses spoke to the heads of the tribes of the sons of Israel, saying -- "This is the word that God has commanded -- In case a man makes a vow to God or swears an oath to bind a vow of abstinence upon his soul, he must not violate his word. According to all that has gone out of his mouth he should do. In case a woman makes a vow to God or she does bind herself with a vow of abstinence in the house of her father in her youth, and her father actually hears her vow or her abstinence vow that she has bound upon her soul and her father does keep silent toward her, all her vows must also stand, and vows must stand, and every abstinence vow that she has bound upon her soul will stand. But if her husband on the day of hearing it forbids her, he has also father has forbidden her on the day of his hearing all her vows or her abstinence vows that she has bound upon her soul, it will not stand, but God will forgive her, and because her father forbade her. "However, if she at all happens to belong to a husband, and her vow is upon her or the thoughtless promise of her lips that she has bound upon her soul, and her husband actually hears it and keeps silent toward her on the day of his hearing it, her vows must also stand or her abstinence vows that she has bound upon her soul will stand. But if her husband on the day of hearing it forbids her, he has also annulled (legally invalid) her vow that was upon her or the thoughtless promise of her lips that she bound upon her soul, and God will forgive her. "In the case of the vow of a widow or a divorced woman, everything that she has bound upon her soul will stand against her. "However, if it is in the house of her husband that she has vowed or has bound an abstinence vow upon her soul by an oath, and her husband has heard it and has kept silent toward her, he has not forbidden her -- and all her vows must stand or any abstinence vow that she has bound upon her soul will stand. But if her husband has totally annulled them on the day of his hearing any expression of her lips as her vows or as an abstinence vow of her soul, they will not stand. Her husband has annulled them, and God will forgive her. Any vow or any oath of an abstinence vow to afflict the soul, her husband should establish it or her husband should annul it. But if her husband absolutely keeps silent toward her from day to day, he has also established all her vows or all her abstinence vows that are upon her. He has established them because he kept silent toward her on the day
of his hearing them. And if he totally annuls them after his hearing them-- he actually bears her error. " These are the regulations that God commanded Moses as between a husband and his wife, as between a father and his daughter in her youth in the house of her father." 31 God then spoke to Moses, saying --"Take vengeance for the sons of Israel upon the Midianites. Afterward you will be gathered to your people." So Moses spoke to the people, saying -- "Equip men from among you for the army, that they may serve against Midian to execute God's vengeance upon Midian. A 1000 of each tribe of all the tribes of Israel you will send into the army." Accordingly from the 1000s of Israel a 1000 were assigned of a tribe, 12,000 equipped for the army. Then Moses sent them out, a 1000 of each tribe, to the army, them and Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest to the army, and the holy utensils and the the trumpets for blowing calls were in his hand. And they went waging war against Midian, just as God had commanded Moses, and they proceeded to kill every male. And they killed the kings of Midian along with the others slain, namely, Evi and Rekem, Zur, Hur and Reba, the five kings of Midian, and they killed Balaam the son of Beor with the sword. But the sons of Israel carried off the women of Midian and their little ones captive -- and all their domestic animals and all their livestock and all their means of maintenance they plundered (rob, raid). And all their cities in which they had settled and all their walled camps they burned with fire. And they went taking all the spoil and the plunder and all the booty (valuables stolen/seized in war) in the way of humans and domestic animals. And they came bringing to Moses and Eleazar the priest and to the assembly of the sons of Israel the captives and the booty and the spoil, to the camp, to the desert plains of Moab, which are by the Jordan at Jericho. Then Moses and Eleazar the priest and all the chieftains of the assembly went out to meet them outside the camp. And Moses grew indignant at the appointed men of the combat forces, the chiefs of the 1000s and the chiefs of the 100s who were coming in from the military expedition. So Moses said to them--"Have you preserved alive every female? Look! They are the ones who, by Balaam's word, served to induce the sons of Israel to commit unfaithfulness toward God over the affair of Peor, so that the scourge came upon the assembly of God. And now kill every male among the little ones, and kill every woman who has had intercourse with man by lying with a male. And save alive for yourselves all the little ones among the women who have not known the act of lying with a male. As for yourselves, camp outside the camp 7 days. Everyone who has killed a soul and everyone who has touched someone slain, you should purify yourselves on the 3rd day, and the 7th day, you and your captives. And every garment and every article of skin and everything made of goat's hair and every article of wood you should purify for yourselves from sin." Eleazar the priest then said to the men of the army who had gone into the battle --
"This is the statute of the law that God commanded Moses, 'Only the gold and the silver, copper, the iron, the tin and the lead, everything that is processed with fire, you should pass through the fire, and it must be clean. Only it should be purified by the water for cleansing. And everything that is not processed with fire you should pass through the water. And you must wash your garments on the 7th day and be clean, and afterward you may come into the camp.'" And God proceeded to say this to Moses--"Take the sum of the booty, the captives both of humankind and the domestic animals, you and Eleazar the priest and the heads of the fathers of the assembly. And you must divide the booty in 2 between those taking part in the battle who went out on the expedition, and all the rest of the assembly. And as a tax for God you must take away from the men of war who went out on the expedition one soul out of 500, of humankind and of the herd and of the asses and of the flock. From their 1/2 you should take it and must give to Eleazar the priest as God's contribution. And from the 1/2 of sons of Israel you should take 1 out 50, of humankind, of the herd, of the asses and of the flock, of every sort of domestic animal, and you must give them to the Levites, the keepers of the obligation of God's tabernacle." And Moses and Eleazar the priest went doing just as God had commanded to Moses. And the booty, the rest the plunder that the people of the expedition had taken as plunder, amounted to 675,000 of the flock, and 72,00 of the herd, and 61,000 asses. As for human souls from the women who had not known the act of lying with a male, all the souls were 32,000. And the 1/2 that was the share of those who went out on the expedition amounted in number to 337,500 of the flock. And the tax for God from the flock amounted to 675. And of the herd there were 36,000 and the tax on them for God was 72. And the asses were 30,500, and the tax on them for God was 61. And the human souls were 16,000 and the tax on them for God was 32 souls. Then Moses gave the tax as God's contribution to Eleazar the priest, just as God had commanded Moses. And from the 1/2 belonging to the sons of Israel, which Moses divided from that belong to the men who waged war -- Now the 1/2 of the assembly from the flock amounted to 337,500, and of the herd, 36,000, and the asses, 30,500, and the human souls, 16,000. Then Moses took from the 1/2 belonging to the sons of Israel the 1 to be taken out of 50, of humankind and of domestic animals, and gave them to the Levites, the keepers of the obligation of God's tabernacle, just as God had commanded Moses. And the appointed men who were of the 1000s of the army, the chiefs of the 1000s and the chiefs of the 100s, proceeded to approach
Moses, and to say to Moses --"Your servants have taken the sum of the men of war who are in our charge and not one has been reported missing from us. So let us present each one what he has found as God's offering, articles of gold, ankle chainlets, and bracelets, signet rings, earrings, and female ornaments, in order to make atonement for our souls before God." Accordingly Moses and Eleazar the priest accepted the gold from them, all the jewelry. And all the gold of the contribution that they contributed to God amounted to 16,750 shekels from the chiefs of the 1000s and the chiefs of the 100s. The men of the army had taken plunder each for himself. So Moses and Eleazar the priest accepted the gold from the chiefs of the 1000s and of the 100s and brought it into the tent of meeting as a memorial for the sons of Israel before God. 32 Now the sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad had come to have numerous livestock, very many, in fact. And they began to see the land of Jazer and the land Gilead, and look! the place was a place for a livestock. Hence the sons of Gad and Reuben came and said this to Moses and Eleazar the priest and to the chieftains of the assembly--"Ataroth and Dibon and Jazer and Mimrah and Heshbon and Elealeh and Sebam, and Nebo and Beon, the land the God defeated before the assembly of Israel, is a land for livestock, and your servants have livestock." And they went on to say--"If we have found a favor in your eyes, let this land be given to your servants as a possession. Do not make us cross the Jordan." Then Moses said to the sons of Gad and the sons of Reuben --"Are your brothers to go to war while you yourselves keep living here? And why should you disheartened the sons of Israel from crossing into the land that God will certainly give them? That is the way your fathers did when I sent them from Kadeshbarnea to see the land. When they went up to the torrent valley of Eshcol and saw the land, then they disheartened the sons of Israel, so as not to go into the land that God was certain to give them. Consequently God's anger blazed on that day so that he swore, saying --'The men who came up out of Egypt from 20 years old upward will not see the soil of which I have sworn to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, because they have not followed me wholly, except Caleb the son of Jephunneh the sons of Nun, because they have followed God wholly. So God 's anger blazed against Israel and he made them wander about in the wilderness 40 years, until all the generation that was doing evil in the eyes God came to their end. And here you have risen in the place of your fathers as the brood of sinful men in order to add further to the burning anger of God against Israel. In case you should turn back from following him, he also would certainly once again let them stay longer in the wilderness, and you would have acted ruinously toward all this people." Later they approached him and said--"Let us build here stone flock pens for our livestock, and cities for our little ones. But we ourselves will go equipped
in battle formation before the sons of Israel until whenever we have brought them to their place, while our little ones must dwell in the cities with fortifications (defenses walls) away from the face of the inhabitants of the land. We will not return to our houses until the sons of Israel have provided themselves with landed property, each with his own inheritance. For we shall not get an inheritance with them from the side of the Jordan and beyond, because our inheritance has come to us from the side of the Jordan toward the sunrising." At this Moses said to them -- "If you will do this thing, if you will equip yourselves before God for the war, and every equipped one of yours will actually pass over the Jordan before God, until he drives away his enemies from before him, and the land is actually subdued before God, and afterward you return, you also will indeed prove yourselves free from guilt against God and against Israel-- and this land must become yours as a possession before God. But if you will not do this way, you will also certainly sin against God. In that case know that your sin will catch up with you. Build for yourselves cities for your little ones and stone pens for your flocks, and what has gone forth from your mouth you should do." Then the sons of Gad and the sons of Reuben said this to Moses -- "Your servants will do just as my lord is commanding. Our little ones, our wives, our livestock and all our domestic animals will stay there in the cities of Gilead. but your servants will pass over, everyone equipped for the army, before God for the war, just as my lord is speaking." Accordingly Moses gave a command respecting them to Eleazar the priest and to Joshua the son of Nun and to the heads of the fathers of the tribes of the sons of Israel. So Moses said to them--"If the sons of Gad and the sons of Reuben pass with you over the Jordan, everyone equipped for the war, before God, and the land is actually subdued before you, you must then give them the land of Gilead as a possession. But if they do not pass over equipped with you, they must then be settled in your midst in the land of Canaan." To this the sons of Gad and the sons of Reuben answered, saying --"What God has spoken to your servants is the way we shall do. We ourselves will pass over equipped before God to the land of Canaan, and the possession of our inheritance will be with us on this side of the Jordan." At this Moses gave to them, that is, to the sons of Gad and to the sons of Reuben and to 1/2 the tribe of Manasseh the son of Joseph, the kingdom of Sihon the king of Amorites and the kingdom of Og the king Bashan, the land belonging to its cities in the territories, and the cities of the land round about. And the sons of Gad proceeded to build Dibon and Ataroth and Aroer, and Atrothshophan and Jazer and Jogbehah, Bethnimrah and Bethharan, the cities with fortifications (defenses), and stone flock pens. And the sons of Reuben built Heshbon and Elealeh and Kiriathaim, and Nobo and Baalmeon--their names being changed--and Sibmah -- and they began to call by their own names the names of the cities that they built.
And the sons of Machir the son of Manasseh proceed to march to Gilead, and to capture it and to drive away the Amorites who were in it. So Moses gave Gilead to Machir the son of Manasseh, and he took up living in it. And Jair the son of Manasseh marched and went capturing their tent villages, and he began to call them Havvothjair. And Nobah marched and went capturing Kenath and its dependent towns -- and he began to call it Nobah by his own name. 33 There were stages of the sons of Israel who went out of the land of Egypt in their armies by the hand of Moses and Aaron. Moses kept recording the departure places by their stages at the order of God -- and these were their stages of one departure place to another-- And they proceeded to pull away from Rameses in the 1st month, on the 15th day of the 1st month. Directly the day after passover the sons of Israel went out with uplifted hand before the eyes of all the Egyptians. All the while the Egyptians were burying those whom God had struck among them, that is, all the 1stborn--and upon their gods God had executed judgements. So the sons of Israel pulled away from Rameses and went camping in Succoth. Then they pulled away Succoth and went camping in Etham, which is on the edge of wilderness. Next they pulled away from Etham and turned back toward Pihahiroth, which is in view of Baalzephon - and they went camping before Migdol. After that they pulled away from Pihahiroth and went passing through the midst of sea to the wilderness and kept marching a 3 day journey in wilderness of Etham and took up camping in Marah. Then they pulled away from Marah and came to Elim. Now in Elim there were 12 springs of water and 70 palm trees. So they camped there. Next they pulled away from Elim and went camping by the Red Sea. After that they pulled away Red Sea and went camping in the wilderness of Sin. Then they pulled away from the wilderness of Sin and camping at Dophkah. Later they pulled away from Dophkah and went camping at Alush. They next pulled away from Alush and went camping in Rephidim. And there proved to be no water for people to drink. After that they pulled away from Rephidim went camping in the wilderness of Sinai. Subsequently they pulled away from the wilderness of Sinai and went camping at Kibrothhattaavah and camping in Hazeroth. After that they pulled away from Hazeroth and went camping in Rithmah. Next they pulled away from Rithmah and camping in Rimmonperez. Then they pulled away from Rimmonperez and went camping in Libnah. Later they pulled away from Rissah and went camping in Kehelathah. Then they pulled away from Kehelathah and went camping in Mount Shepher. After that they pulled away from Mount Shepher and went camping in Haradah. Then they pulled away from Haradah and went camping
in Makheloth. Next they pulled away from Makheloth and went camping in Tahath. After that they pulled away from Tahath and went camping in Terah. Then they pulled away from Terah and went camping in Mithkah. Later they pulled away from Mithkah and went camping in Hashmonah. Next they pulled away from Hashmonah and went camping in Moseroth. Then they pulled away from Moseroth and went camping in Benejaakan. After that they pulled away from Benejaakan and went camping in Horhaggidgad. Later they pulled away from Horhaggidgad and went camping in Jotbathah. Later they pulled away from Jotbathah and went camping in Abronah. Then they pulled away from Abronah and went camping in Eziongeber. After that they pulled away from Eziongeber and went camping in the wilderness of Zin, that is to say, Kadesh. Later they pulled away from Kadesh and went camping in Mount Hor, on the frontier of the land of Edom. And Aaron the priest proceeded to go up into Mount Hor at the order of God and to die there in the 40th year of the going out of the sons of Israel from the land of Egypt, in the 5th month, on the 1st of the month. And Aaron was 123 years old at his death on Mount Hor. Now the Canaanite, the king Arad, as he was dwelling in the Negeb, in the land of Canaan, got to hear about the coming of the sons of Israel. In time they pulled away from Mount Hor and went camping in Zalmonah. After that they pulled away from Zalmonah and went camping in Punon. Next they pulled away from Punon and went camping in Oboth. Then they pulled away from Oboth and went camping in Iyeabarim on the border of Moab. Later they pulled away from Iyim and went camping in Dibongad. After that they pulled away from Dibongad and went camping in Almondiblathaim. Then they pulled away from Almondiblathaim and went camping in the Mountains of Abarim before Nebo. Finally they pulled away from the mountains of Abarim and took up camping on the desert plains of Moab by Jordan at Jericho. And they continued camping by the Jordan from Bethjeshimoth to Abelshittim on the desert plains of Moab. And God proceeded to speak to Moses on the desert plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho, saying --"Speak to the sons of Israel, and you must say to them, 'You are crossing the Jordan into the land of Canaan. And you must drive away all the inhabitants of the land from before you, and destroy all their stone figures, and all their images of molten metal you should destroy, and all their sacred high places you should annihilate. And you must take possession of the land and dwell in it, because to you I shall certainly give the land to take possession of it. And you must apportion the land to yourselves as a possession by lot according to your families. To the populous one you should increase his inheritance, and to the sparse one you should reduce his inheritance. To where the lot will come out for him, there it will become his. By the tribes of your fathers you should provide yourselves with landed property.
"'If though, you will not drive the inhabitants of the land away from before you, then those whom you leave of them will certainly become as pricks in your eyes and as thorns in you sides, and they will indeed harass you on the land in which you will be dwelling. And it must occur that just as I had figured doing to them I shall do to you.'" 34 And God spoke further to Moses, saying -- "Command the sons of Israel, and must say to them--'You are going into the land of Canaan. This is the land which will fall to you by inheritance, the land of Canaan by its boundaries. "'And your south side must proved to be from wilderness of Zin alongside Edom, and your south boundary must prove to be from extremity of the Salt Sea on the east. And your boundary must change direction from the south of the ascent of Akrabbim and cross over to Zin, and its termination must prove to be on the south of Kadeshbarnea -- and it must go out to Hazaraddar and pass over to Azmon. And the boundary must change direction at Azmon to the torrent valley of Egypt, and its termination must prove to be at the Sea. "'As for a west boundary, it must prove to be for you the Great Sea and the shoreland. This will become your west boundary. "'Now this will become your north boundary -- From the Great Sea you will mark out to Mount Hor as a boundary for yourselves. From Mount Hor you will mark out the boundary to the entering in of Hamath, and the termination of the boundary must prove to be at Zedad. And the boundary must go out to Ziphron, and its termination must prove to be Hazarenan. This will become your north boundary. "'Then you must mark for yourselves as your boundary on the east from Hazarenan to Shepham. And the boundary must go down from Shepham to Riblah on the east of Ain, and the border must go down and strike upon the eastern slope of the sea of Chinnereth. And the border must go down to the Jordan, and its termination must prove to be the Salt Sea. This will become your land according to its boundaries all around.'" So Moses commaned the sons of Israel, saying --"This is the land that you will apportion to yourselves as a possession by lot, just as God has commanded to give to the 9 1/2 tribes. For the tribe of the sons of the Reubenites by the house of their fathers, and the tribe of the sons of the Gadites by the house of their fathers have already taken thier inheritance. The 2 1/2 tribes have already taken their inheritance from the region of the Jordan by Jericho eastward toward the sunrising." And God spoke further to Moses, saying --"These are the names of the men who will divide the land to you people for a possession, Eleazar the priest and Joshua the son of Nun. And you will take one chieftain out of each tribe to divide land for a possession. And these are the names of the men-Of the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephunneh -- and the of the tribe of sons of Simeon, Shemuel the son of Ammihud -- of the tribe of Benjamin, Elidad the son of Chislon -- and of the tribe of sons of Dan a chieftain
Bukki the son of Jogli -- of the sons of Joseph, of the tribe of the sons of Manasseh a chieftain, Hanniel the son of Ephod -- and of the tribe of the sons of Ephraim a chieftain, Kemuel the son of Shiphtan -- and of the tribe of the sons of Zubulun a chieftain, Elizaphan the son of Parnach -- and of the tribe of the sons of Issachar a chieftain, Paltiel the son of Azzan -- and of the tribe of the sons of Asher a chieftain, Ahihud the son of Shelomi -- and of the tribe of the sons of Naphtali a chieftain Pedahel the son of Ammihud." These are the ones whom God commanded to make the sons of Israel landholders in the land of Canaan. 35 And God went on speak to Moses on the desert plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho, saying --"Give the sons of Israel command that they must give the Levites cities to inhabit out of the inheritance of their possession, and they should give the Levites the pasture ground all around them. And the cities must serve for them to inhabit, while their pasture ground will serve for domestic animals and all their goods and for all their and wild beasts. And the pasture grounds of the cities, which you will give to the Levites, will be from the wall of the city and out for a 1,000 cubits (approx. 1500 feet) all around. And you must measure outside the city on the east side 2,000 cubits (approx. 3,000 feet) and on the south side 2,000 cubits (approx. 3,000 feet) and on the west side 2,000 cubits (approx. 3,000 feet) and on the north side 2,000 cubits ( approx. 3000 feet), with the city in the middle. This will serve them as pasture grounds of the cities. "These are the cities that you will give to the Levites -- 6 cities of refuge, which you will give for the manslayer (murderer) to flee there, and beside them you will give 42 other cities. All the cities that you will give to the Levites will be 48 cities to the Levites, they together with their pasture grounds. The cities that you will give will be from the possession of the sons of Israel. From the many you will take many, and from the few you will take few. Each one, in proportion to his inheritance that he will take as a possession, will give some of his cities to the Levites." And God continued to speak to Moses, saying --"Speak to the sons of Israel, and you must say to them, 'You are crossing Jordan to the land of Canaan. And you must choose cities convenient for yourselves. As cities of refuge they will serve for you, and the manslayer must flee there who fatally strikes a soul unintentionally. And the cities must serve you as a refuge from the blood avenger, that the manslayer may not die until he stands before the assembly for judgment. And the ciities that you will give, the 6 cities of refuge will be at your service. 3 cities you will give on the side of the Jordan, and 3 cities you will give in land of Canaan. As cities of refuge they will serve. For the sons of Israel and for the alien resident and for the settler in the midst of them these 6 cities will serve as a refuge, for anyone to flee there that fatally strikes a soul unintentionally. "'Now if it was with an iron that he has struck him so that he dies, he is a murderer. Without fail murderer should be put to death. And if it was a small stone by which he could die that has struck him so that he
dies, he is a murderer. Without fail the murderer should be put to death. And if it was with a small instrument of wood by which he could die that he has struck him so that he dies, he is a murderer. Without fail the murderer should be put to death. "'The avenger of blood is the one who will put the murderer to death. When he chances upon him he himself will put him to death. And if in hatred he was pushing him or he has thrown at him while lying in wait that he might die, or in enmity he has struck him with his hand that he might die, without fail the striker should be put to death. He is a murderer. The avenger of blood will put the murderer to death when he chances upon him. "'But if it was unexpectedly without enmity that he has pushed him or has thrown any article toward him without lying in wait, or any stone by which he could die without seeing him or he should cause it to fall upon him, so that he died, while he was not at enmity with him and was not seeking his injury, the assembly must then judge between the striker and the avenger of blood according to these judgements. And the assembly must deliver the manslayer out of the hand of the avenger of blood, and the assembly must return him to his city of refuge to which he had fled, and he must dwell in it until the death of high priest who was anointed with holy oil. "'But if the manslayer without fail goes out of the boundary of his city of refuge to which he may flee, and the avenger of blood does find him outside the boundary of his city of refuge, and the avenger of blood does slay the manslayer, he has no blood guilt. For he ought to dwelt in his city of refuge until high priest's death, and after high priest's death the manslayer may return to the land of his possession. And these must serve as a statute of judgment for you throughout your generations in all of your dwelling places. "'Every fatal striker of a soul should be slain as a murderer at the mouth of witnesses, and one witness may not testify against a soul for him to die. And you must take no ransom for the soul of a murderer who is deserving to die, for without fail he should be put to death. And you must not take a ransom for one who has fled to the city of refuge, to resume dwelling in the land before the death of the high priest. "'And you must not pollute the land where you are, because it is the blood that pollutes the land, and for the land there may be no atonement respecting the blood that has been spilled upon it except by the blood of the one who spilling it. And you must not defile the land in which you are dwelling, in the midst of it which I am residing in the midst of the sons of Israel.'" 36 And the heads of the fathers of the family of the sons of Gilead the son of Machir the son of Manasseh of the families of the sons of Joseph proceeded to come near and speak before Moses and the chieftains, the heads of the fathers of the sons of of Israel, and say -- "God commanded my lord to give the land in inheritance by lot to the sons of Israel, and my lord was commanded by God to give the inheritance of Zelophehad our brother to his daughters. If any of the sons of Israel happened to get them as wives, the women's inheritance must also be
withdrawn from the inheritance of our fathers and must be added to the inheritance of the tribe to which they may come to belong, so that it would be withdrawn from the lot of our inheritance. Now if the Jublilee takes place for the sons of Israel, the women's inheritance must also be added to the inheritance of the tribe to which they may come to belong, so that their inheritance would be withdrawn from the inheritance of the tribe of our fathers." Then Moses commanded the sons of Israel at the order of God, saying--"The tribe of the sons of Joseph is speaking right. This is the word of God has commanded for the daughters of Zelophehad, saying--'To whom it is good in their eyes they may become wives. Only it is to the family of the tribe of their fathers that they should become wives. And no inheritance of the sons of Israel should cleave from tribe to tribe, because the sons of Israel should Cleave each one to the inheritance of the tribe of his forefathers. And every daughter getting possession of an inheritance out of the tribes of the sons of Israel, to one of the family of the tribe of her father she should become a wife, in order that the sons of Israel may get possession each one of the inheritance of his forefathers. And no inheritance should circulate from one tribe to another tribe, because the tribes of the sons of Israel cleave each to its own inheritance.'" Just as God had commanded Moses, that is the way of daughters of Zelophehad did. Accordingly Mahlah, Tirzah and Hoglah and Milcah and Noah, the daughters of Zelophehad, became the wives of the sons of their father's brothers. To some of the families of the sons of Manasseh the son of Joseph they became wives, that their inheritance might continue together with the tribe of the family of their father. These are the commandments and the judicial decisions that God commanded by means of Moses to the sons of Israel on the desert plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho.
Deuteronomy
1 These are the words that Moses spoke to all Israel in the region of the Jordan in the wilderness, on the desert plains in front of Suph, between Paran and Tophel and Laban and Hazeroth and Dizahab, it being 11 days from Horeb by the way of Mount Seir to Kadeshbarnea. And it was about in the 40th year, in the 11th month and on the 1st day of the month, Moses spoke to the sons of Israel according to all that God had commanded him for them, after his defeating Sihon the king of the Amorites, who was dwelling in Heshbon, and Og king of Bashan, who was dwelling in Ashtaroth, in Edrei. In the region of the Jordan in the land of Moab Moses undertook to explain this law, saying --"God our Jehovah spoke to us in Horeb, saying, 'You have
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Blue Ink -- Understand & Pray
Deuteronomy 1 -34
dwelt long enough in this mountainous region. Turn and set out on your way and go into the mountainous region of the Amorites and to all their neighbors in the Arabah, the mountainous region and the Shephelah and the Negeb and the seacoast, the land of the Canaanites, and Lebanon, up to the great river, the river of Euphraites. See, I do put the land before you people. Go in and take possession of the land about which God swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob to give to them and their seed after them.' "And I proceeded to say this to you at that particular time, 'I am not able by myself to carry you, Jehovah your God has multiplied you, and here you are today like the stars of the heavens of multitude. May Jehovah the God of your ancestors increase you a 1000 times as many as you are, and may HE bless you just as he promised you. How can I carry by myself the burden of you, and the load of you, and your quarreling? Get wise and discreet and experienced men of your tribes, that I may set them as heads over you.' At that you answered me and said, 'The thing you have spoken for us to do is good' So I took the heads of your tribes, men wise and experienced, and put them as heads over you, chiefs of 1000s and chiefs of 100s and chiefs of 50s and chiefs of 10s and officers of your tribes. "And I went on to command your judges at that particular time, saying, 'When having a hearing between your brothers, you must judge with righteousness between a man and his brother or his alien resident. You must not be partial in judgment. You should hear the little one the same as the great one. You must not become frightened because of a man, for the judgment belongs to God -- and the case that is too hard for you, you should present it to me, and I must hear it. And I proceeded to command you at that particular time all the things that you should do. "Then we pulled away from Horeb and went marching through all that great and fear-inspiring wilderness, which you have seen, by the way of the mountainous region of the Amorites, just as our God had commanded us, and we eventually came to Kadeshbarnea. I Now said to you, 'You have come to the mountainous region of the Amorites, just as God our Lord is giving to us. See, Jehovah your God has abandoned the land to you. Go up, take possession, just as Jehovah the God of your forefathers has spoken to you. Do not be afraid, nor be terrified. "However, all of you came near me and said, 'Do let us send men ahead of us that they may search out the land for us, and bring us back word concerning the way by which we should go up and the cities which we will come' Well, the thing proved to be good in my eyes, so that I took 12 men of yours, one for each tribe. Then they turned and went up into the mountainous region and got as far as torrent valley of Eshcol and went spying on it. And they proceeded to take some of the fruitage of the land in their hand and to bring it down to us, and they came bringing us back word and saying, 'The land that God our Lord is giving us is good.' But you did not wish to go up, and you began to behave rebelliously
against the order of God our Lord. And you kept grumbling in your tents and saying--'It was because God hated us that HE brought us out of the land of Egypt to give us into the hands of Amorites, to annihilate (destroy) us. Where are we going up? Our brothers have caused our hearts to melt, saying--"A people greater and taller than we are, cities great and fortified to the heavens and also the sons of the Anakim we saw there."' "So I said to you, 'You must not suffer a shock or be afraid because of them. God your Jehovah is the one going before you. He will fight for you according to all that he did with you in Egypt under your own eyes, and in the wilderness, where you saw how God your Lord carried you just as a man carries his son, in all the way that you walked until you coming to this place.' But despite this word you were not putting faith in God your Lord, who was going before you in the way to spy out for you a place for you to camp, by fire at night for you to see by what way you should walk and by a cloud in daytime. "All the while God heard the voice of your words. So he became indignant and swore, saying, 'Not one among these men of this evil generation will see the good land that I swore to give to your fathers, except Caleb the son of Jephunneh. He will see it, and to him and to his sons I shall give the land upon which he trods (walks), by reason of the fact that he has followed God fully. (Even against me God got incensed (enraged) on your account, saying, 'You too will not go in there. Joshua the son of Nun, who is standing before you, is the one who will go in there.' Him he has made strong, because he will cause Israel to inherit it.) As for your little ones of whom you said--"plunder they will become!" and your sons who today do not know good or bad, these will go in there, and to them I shall give it, and they will take possession of it. As for you yourselves, change your direction and pull away for the wilderness by the way of the Red Sea.' "At this you answered and said to me, 'We have sinned against God. We -- we shall go up and fight in accord with all our God has commanded us! So you girded on, each one, his weapons of war and regarded it as easy to go up into the mountain. But God said to me--'Say to them--"You must not go up and fight, because I am not in your midst, that you may not be defeated before your enemies."' So I spoke to you, and you did not listen but began to behave rebelliously against God's order and to get all heated up (angry), and you tried to go up into the mountain. Then the Amorites who were dwelling in that mountain came out to meet you and went chasing you, just as bees do, and scattering you in Seir as far as Hormah. After that you returned and began to weep before God, but God did not listen to your voice, neither did he give ear to you. So you kept dwelling in Kadesh many days, as many days as you did dwell there. 2 "Then we turned and pulled away for the wilderness by the way of the Red Sea, just as God had spoken to me -- and we were many days in going around Mount Seir. Finally God said this to me, 'You have gone around this mountain long enough. Change your
direction to the north. And you command the people, saying --"You are passing along by the border of your brothers, the sons of Esau who are dwelling in Seir, and they will be afraid because of you, and you must be very careful. Do not engage in strife (conflict) with them, because I shall not give you their land so much as the width of the sole of the foot -- because I have given Mount Seir to Esau as a holding. What food you may buy from them for money, you must eat -- and also what water you may purchase from them for money--you must drink. For Jehovah your God has blessed you in every deed of your hand. He well knows of your walking through this great wilderness. These 40 years God your Lord has been with you. You have not lacked a thing." So we passed on away from our brothers, the sons of Esau, who are dwelling in Seir, from the way of Arabah, from Elath and from Eziongeber. "Next we turned and passed on by the way of the wilderness of Moab. God then said to me, 'Do not molest Moab or engage in war with them, because I shall not give you any of his land as a holding, for to the sons of Lot I have given Ar as a holding. (The Emim dwelt in it in former times, a people great and numerous and tall like the Anakim. As for the Rephaim, they also were considered like the Anakim, and the Moabites used to call them Emim. And the Horites dwelt in Seir in former times, and the sons of Esau proceeded to dispossess them and to annihilate (destroy) them from before them, and dwell in their place, just the same as Israel must do to the land that is his holding, which God will certainly give to them.) At this time rise and make your way across the torrent valley of Zered. Accordingly we went crossing the torrent valley of Zered. And the days that we walked from Kadeshbarnea until we crossed the torrent valley of Zered were 38 years, until all the generation of the men of war had come to their end from the midst of the camp, just as God had sworn to them. And the hand of God also proved to be upon them to disquiet them out of the midst of the camp, until they came to their end. "And it was about that as soon as all the men of war had finished dying off from the midst of the people. God spoke further to me, saying, 'You are passing today by the territory of Moab, that is Ar, and you must get close in front of the sons of Ammon. Do not molest them or engage in strife (conflict) with them, because I shall not give you any of the land of the sons of Ammon as a holding, for it is to the sons of Lot that I have given it as a holding. As the land of the Rephaim it also used to be considered. (The Rephaim dwelt in it in former times, and Ammonites used to call them Zamzummim. They were a great and numerous and tall people like the Anakim -- and God went annihilating (destroying) them from before them, that they might dispossess them and dwell in their place -- just the same as he did for the sons of Esau, who are dwelling in Seir, when he annihilated (destroyed) the Horites from before them, that they might dispossess them and dwell in their place until this day. As for the Avvim, who were dwelling in settlements as far as
Gaza, the Caphtorim, who came out from Caphtor, anniliated them, that they might dwell in their place.) "'Get up, pull away and cross the torrent valley of Arnon. See, I have given into your hand Sihon the king of Heshbon, the Amorite. So start to possession of his land, and engage in war with him. This day I shall start to put the dread of you and the fear of you before the peoples beneath all the heavens, who will hear the report about you -- and they will indeed be agitated and have pains like those of childbirth because of you.' "Then I sent messengers from the wilderness of Kedemoth to Sihon the king of Heshbon with words of peace, saying --'Let me pass through your land. Only on the road I shall walk. I shall not turn to the right or to the left. What food you will sell me for money, I must eat -- and what water you will give me for money, I must drink. Only let me pass through on my feet, just the same as the sons of Esau dwelling in Seir and the Moabites dwelling in Ar did to me, until I shall pass over the Jordan into the land that God our Lord is giving to us.' And Sihon king of Heshbon did not let us pass through him, because God our Lord had let his spirit become obstinate and his heart become hard, in order to give him into your hand just as at this day. "At this God said to me, 'See, I have started to abandon Sihon and his land to you. Start to take possession of his land.' When Sihon came on out, he and all his people, to meet us in battle at Jahaz, then God our Lord abandoned him to us, so that we defeated him and his sons and all his people. And we went capturing all his cities at that particular time and devoting every city to destruction, men and women and little children. We left no survivor. Only the domestic animals did we take as plunder for ourselves, together with the spoil of the cities that we had captured. From Aroer, which is by the bank of the torrent valley of Arnon, and the city that is in the torrent valley, as far as Gilead, there proved to be no town that was too high up for us. God our Jehovah abandoned them all to us. Only you did not go near the land of the sons of Ammon, the whole bank of the torrent valley of Jabbok, nor the cities of the mountainous region, nor anything about which God our Lord had given command. 3 "Then we turned and went up by the way of Bashan. At this Og the king of Bashan came on out, he and all his people, to meet us in battle at Edrei. So God said to me, 'Do not be afraid of him for I shall certainly give him and all his people and his land into your hand -- and you must do to him just as you did to Sihon the king of the Amorites, who was dwelling in Heshbon.' Accordingly Jehovah our God gave into our hand also Og the king of Bashan and all his people, and we kept striking (killing) him until he had no survivor remaining. And we went capturing all his cities at that particular time. There proved to be no town that we did not take from them, 60 cities, all the region of Argob, the kingdom of Og in Bashan. All these were cities fortified with high wall, doors and bar, aside from very many rural towns. However, we devoted them to destruction, just as we had done to Sihon the king of Heshbon, in devoting every city
to destruction, men, women and little children. And all the domestic animals and the spoil of the cities we took as plunder for ourselves. "And we proceeded to take at that particular time the land from the hand of the 2 kings of the Amorites who were in the region of the Jordan, from the torrent valley of Arnon as far as Mount Hermon --(the Sidonians used to call Hermon Sirion, and the Amorites used to call it Senir,) all the cities of the tableland and all Gilead and all Bashan as far as Salecah and Edrei, the cities of kingdom of Og in Bashan). For only Og the king of Bashan remained of what was left of the Rephaim. Look! His bier (coffin) was a bier of the iron. Is it not in Rabbah of the sons of Ammon? 9 cubits (approx. 13 1/2 feet) is its length, and 4 cubits (approx. 6 feet) its width, by the cubit of a man. And we took possession of this land at that particular time -- from Aroer, which is is the torrent valley of Arnon, and 1/2 of the mountainous region of Gilead, and its cities I have given to the Reubenites and the Gadites. And the rest of Gilead and all Bashan of the kingdom of Og I have given to the half tribe of Manasseh. All the region of Argob of all Bashan, is it not called the land of the Rephaim? "Jair the son of Manasseh took all the region of Argob as far as the boundary of the Geshurites and the Maacathites, and he proceeded to call those villages of Bashan by his own name, Havvothjair, to this day. To Machir I have given Gilead. To the Reubenites and the Gadites I have given from Gilead to the torrent valley of Arnon, the middle of the torrent valley being a boundary, and as far as Jabbok, the torrent valley that is the boundary of the sons of Ammon, and the Arabah and the Jordan and the border, from Chinnereth to the sea of the Arabah, the Salt Sea, at the base of slopes of Pisgah toward the sunrising. "So I commanded you men at that particular time, saying--'Jehovah your God has given you this land to take possession of it. You will pass over, equipped, before your brothers, the sons of Israel, all the valiant (fearless) men. Only your wives and your little ones and your livestock (I well know that you have a great deal of livestock) will continue dwelling in your cities that I have given you, until God give your brothers rest, as well as you, and they also have taken possession of the land that Jehovah your God is giving them across the Jordan -- after which you must come back, each one to his holding that I have given you.' "And I commanded Joshua at that particular time, saying -- 'Your eyes are seeing all that God your Lord has done to these 2 kings. The same way God will do to all the kingdoms to which you are passing over there. You men must not be afraid of them, for God your Jehovah is the One fighting for you.' "And I proceeded to implore favor from God at that particular time, saying -- 'O Sovereign Lord God, you yourself have started to make your servant see your greatness and your strong arm, for who is a god in the heavens or on the earth that does deeds like yours and mighty performances like yours? Let me pass over, please, and see the good land that is across the Jordan, this good mountainous region
and Lebanon.' God continued to be furious against me on your account and did not listen to me -- but God said to me--'That is enough of you! Never speak to me further on this matter. Go up to the top of Pisgah and raise your eyes to the west and north and south and east and see with your eyes, for you will not pass over this Jordan. And commission Joshua and encourage him and strengthen him, because he is the one to pass over before this people and he is the one to cause them to inherit the land that you will see.' All this while we were dwelling in the valley in front of Bethpeor. 4 "And now, O Israel, listen to the regulations and the judicial decisions that I am teaching you to do, in order that you may live and may indeed go in and take possession of the land that God of your forefathers is giving you. You must not add to the word that I am commanding you, neither must you take away from it, so as to keep the commandments of God your Jehovah that I am commanding you. "Your own eyes are the ones that saw what God did in the case of Baal of Peor, that every man who walked after the Baal of Peor was the one whom God of your Jehovah annihilate (destroyed) from your midst. But you who are cleaving (separating) to God your Lord are all of you alive today. See, I have taught you regulations and judicial decisions, just as God my Lord has commanded me, for you to do that way in the midst of the land to which you are going to take possession of it. And you must keep and do them, because this is wisdom on your part and understanding on your part before the eyes of the peoples who will hear of all these regulations, and they will certainly say, 'This great nation is undoubtedly a wise and understanding people.' For what great nation is there that has gods near to it the way God our Lord is in all our calling upon him? And what great nation is there that has righteous regulations and judicial decisions like all this law that I am putting before you today? "Only watch out for yourself and take good care of your soul, that you may not forget the things that your eyes have seen and that they may not depart from your heart all the days of your life -- and you must make them known to your sons and to your grandsons, the day that you stood before God your Lord in Horeb, when God said to me, 'Congregate the people together to me that I may let them hear my words, that they may learn to fear me all the days that they are alive on the soil and that they may teach their sons.' "So you people came near and stood at the base of the mountain, and the mountain was burning with fire up to midheaven--there was darkness, cloud and thick gloom. And God began to speak to you out of the middle of the fire. The sound of words was what you were hearing, but no form were you seeing --nothing but a voice. And he proceeded to state to you his covenant, which he commanded you to perform -- the Ten Words. after which he wrote them upon 2 tablets of stone. And it was I whom God commanded at that particular time to
teach you regulations and judicial decisions, for you to do them in the land to which you are passing over to take ownership of it. And you must take good care of your souls, because you did not see any form on the day of God's speaking to you in Horeb out of the middle of the fire, that you may not act ruinously, and may not really make for yourselves a carved image, the form of any symbol, the representation of male or female, the representation of any beast that is in the earth, the representation of any winged bird that flies in the heavens, the representation of anything moving on the ground, the representation of any fish that is in the waters under the earth, and that you may not raise your eyes to the heavens and indeed see the sun and the moon and the stars, all the army of the heavens, and actually get seduced and bow down to them and serve them, which your God has apportioned to all the peoples under the whole heavens. But you are the ones God took that he might bring you out of the iron furnace, out of Egypt, to become a people of private ownership to him as at this day. And God got very angry at me on your account, so that he swore-- I should not cross the Jordan or go into the good land our God is giving you as inheritance. For I am dying in this land. I am not crossing the Jordan, but you are crossing, and you must take ownership of this good land. Watch out for yourselves that you may not forget the covenant of Jehovah your God that he concluded with you, and that you do not make for yourselves a carved image, the form of anything about which your God has commanded you. For your God is a consuming fire, a God exacting exclusive devotion. In case you become father to sons and grandsons and you resided a long time in the land and do act ruinously and do make a carved image, a form of anything, and do commit evil in the eyes of Jehovah your God so as to offend him. I do take as witnesses against you today the heavens and the earth, that you will positively perish in a hurry from off the land to which you are crossing the Jordan to take possession of it. You will not lengthen your days on it, because you will positively be destroyed. God will certainly scatter you among the peoples, and you will indeed remain a few in number among the nations to which God will drive you away. There you will have to serve gods, the product of the hands of man, wood and stone, which cannot see or hear or eat or smell. If you do look for God your Jehovah from there, you will also certainly find him, because you will ask for him with all your heart and with all your soul. When you are in sore straits and all these words have found you out at the close of the days, then you will have to return to your God and to listen to his voice. For your God is a merciful God. He will not desert you or bring you to ruin or forget the covenant of your forefathers that he swore to them. Now ask please, concerning the former days that occurred before you, from the day that God created man on the earth, and from one end of the
heavens to the other end of the heavens, was any great thing brought about like this or was anything heard like it? Has any other people heard the voice of God speaking out of the middle of the fire the way you yourself have heard it, and kept on living? Or did God attempt to come to take a nation to himself out the midst of another nation with provings, with signs and with miracles and with war, and with a strong hand, and with an outstrectched arm and with fearsomeness like all that your God has done for you in Egypt before your eyes? You -- You have been shown, so as to know that Jehovah is the true God--there is no other besides him. Out of the heavens he made you hear his voice so as to correct you--and upon the earth he made you see his great fire, and his words you heard from the middle of the fire. And yet you continue to live, because he loved your forefathers so that he chose their seed after them and brought you out of Egypt in his sight with his great power, to drive away nations greater and mightier than you from before you, so as to bring you in, to give you their land as inheritance as at this day. You well know today, and you must call back to your heart that God is the true God in the heavens above and on the earth beneath. There is no other. And you must keep his regulations and his commandments that I am commanding you today, that it may go well with you and your sons after you, and in order that you may lengthen your days on the soil that your God is giving you, always." At that time Moses proceeded to set apart cities on the side of the Jordan toward the rising of the sun, for the manslayer to flee there who kills his fellow without knowing it, while he was not hating him formerly--and he must flee to one of these cities and live, namely, Bezer in the wilderness on the tableland for the Reubenites, and Ramoth in Gilead for the Gadites, and Golan in Bashan for the Manassites. Now this is the law that Moses set before the sons of Israel. These are the testimonies and the regulations and the judicial decisions that Moses spoke to the sons of Israel on their way out of Egypt, in the region of the Jordan in the valley in front of Bethpeor, in the land of Sihon the king of the Amorites, who was living in Heshbon, whom Moses and the sons of Israel defeated on their way out of Egypt. They took possession of the land, and of the land of Og the king of Bushan, the 2 kings of the Amorites who were in the region of the Jordan toward the rising of the sun, from Aroer, which is on the bank of the torrent valley of Arnon, up to Mount Sion, that is Hermon, and all the Arabah in the region of the Jordan toward the east, and as far as the sea of the Arabah at the base of the slopes of Pisgah. 5 Moses proceeded to call all Israel and to say to them--"Hear, O Israel, the regulations and the judicial decisions that I am speaking in your ears today, and you must learn them and be careful to do them. Our God concluded (ended) a covenant with us in Horeb. It was not with our ancestors that God concluded this covenant,
but with us, all those of us alive here today. Face to face God spoke with you in the mountain out of the middle of the fire. I was standing between God and you at that particular time to tell you the word of God, (for you were afraid because of the fire and did not go up into the mountain) saying -- "'I am your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slaves. You must never have any other gods against my face. You must not make for yourself a carved image, any form like anything that is in the heavens above or that is on the earth underneath or that is in the waters under the earth. You must not bow down to them or be led to serve them, because I Jehovah your God am a God exacting exclusive devotion, bringing punishment for the error of fathers upon sons and upon the 3rd generation and upon the 4th generation, in the case of those who hate me--but exercising loving kindness toward the 1000th generation in the case of those who love me and keep my commandments. You must not take up the name of Jehovah your God in a worthless way-- for God will not leave anyone unpunished who takes up his name in worthless way. Keeping the sabbath day to hold it sacred, just as your God commanded you, you are to render service and you must do all your work 6 days. But the 7th day is a sabbath to your God. You must not do any work, you nor your son, nor your daughter, slave man, slave girl, bull nor your donkey, nor any domestic animal of yours, nor your alien resident who is inside your gates, in order that your slave man and your slave girl may rest the same as you. You must remember that you became a slave in Egypt and your God proceeded to bring you out from there with a strong hand and outstretched arm. That is why your God commanded you to carry on the sabbath day. Honor your father and your mother, just as your God has commanded you, in order that your days may prove long and it may go well with you on the ground that your God is giving you. You must not murder. You must not commit adultery You must not steal. Must not testify to a falsehood against your fellowman. You must not desire your fellowman's wife. Must not selfishly desire fellowman's house, his field, or his slave man or slave girl, his bull, his donkey or anything that belongs to your fellowman. These words of God spoke to all your congregation in the mountain out of the middle of the fire, the cloud and the thick gloom, with a loud voice and he added nothing, after which he wrote them upon 2 tablets of stone and gave them to me. It was about that as soon as you had heard the voice out of the middle of the darkness, while the mountain was burning with fire, you proceeded to come near to me, all the heads of your tribes and your
older men. Then you said, 'Here God has shown us his glory and his greatness, and we have heard his voice out of the middle of the fire. This day we have seen that God may speak with man and he may actually keep living. Now why should we die, for this great fire may consume us? If we are again hearing the voice of God any further, we are also certain to die. For who is there of all flesh that has heard the voice of the living God speaking out of the middle of the fire as we did and yet goes on living? You yourself go near and hear all that our God will say and you will be the one to speak to us all that our God will speak to you, and we shall certainly listen and do.' So God heard the voice of our words when you spoke to me, and God went on to say to me, 'I have heard the voice of the words of this people, which they have spoken to you. They have done well in all they have spoken. If only they would develop this heart of theirs to fear me and to keep all my commandments always, in order that it might go well with them and their sons forever. Go say to them--"Return home to your tents." You must stand here with me, and let me speak to you all the commandment and the regulations and the judicial decisions that you should teach to them and that they must do in the land that I am giving them to own it. You people must take care to do just as your God has commanded you. You must not turn to the right or the left. In all the way that your God has commanded you, you should walk, in order that you may live and it may be well with you and you may indeed lengthen your days in the land of which you will own it. 6 Now these are the commandment, the regulations and the judicial decisions that your God has commanded to teach you, so as to do them in the land to which you are passing over there to take ownership of it--in order that you may fear your God so as to keep all his statutes (laws) and his commandments that I am ordering you, you and your son and your grandson, all the days of your life, and in order that your days may prove long. You must listen, O Israel and take care to do them, that it may go well with you and that you may become very many, just as Jehovah the God of your ancestors has promised you, as respects the land flowing with milk and honey. Listen, O Israel--Jehovah our God is one Jehovah. You must love Jehovah your God with all your heart, and all your soul, and all our vital force. These words that I am commanding you today must prove to be on your heart, and you must instill them in your son, and speak of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk on the road and when you lie down and when you get up. And you must tie them as a sign upon your hand, and they must serve as a frontlet (cloth ornament hanging in front of Altar) hand between your eyes, and you must write them upon the doorposts of your house and on your gates. It must occur that when your God will bring you into the land that he swore to your forefathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob to give
you, great and good looking cities that you did not build. and house full of all good things that you did not fill, cisterns (water holding receptacle) carved out that you did not carve out, vineyards and olive trees that you did not plant, and you shall have eaten and become full--watch out for yourself that you may not forget God who brought you out of Egypt, out of house of slaves. Lord your God you should fear, and him you should serve, and by his name you should swear. You must not walk after other gods, any gods of the peoples who are all around you, (For Lord your God in your midst is a God exacting exclusive devotion.) for fear of anger of God your Lord may burn against you and he must destroy you from off the surface of the ground. You must not put your God to the test, the way you put him to the test at Massah. You should by all means keep the commandments of the Lord your God and his testimonies and his regulations that he has commanded you. You must do what is right and good in God's eyes, in order that it may go well with you, and you may indeed enter and take ownership of the good land about which God has sworn to you, just as God has promised you. In case your son should ask you in the future, saying--'What do the testimonies and the regulations and the judicial decisions mean that God your Jehovah has commanded you? then you must answer your son, 'We became slaves to Pharaoh in Egypt, but God proceeded to bring us out of Egypt with a strong hand, So Jehovah kept putting signs and miracles great and disastrous, upon Egypt, upon Pharaoh, upon all his household before our eyes. He brought us out of there in order that he might bring us here to give us the land about which he had sworn to our ancestors. Hence God ordered us to carry out all these regulations, to fear God our Jehovah for our good always, that we might keep alive as to this day. It will mean righteousness for us--that we take care to do all this commandment before the Lord our God, just as he commanded us.' 7 When your God at last bring you into the land to which you are going to take ownership of it, he must also clear away populous nations from before you, the Hittites, the Girgashites , the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites--7 nations more populous and mighty than you are. Your God will certainly abandon them to you, and you must defeat them. You should without fail devote them to destruction. You must end (conclude) no covenant with them, nor show them any favor. You must form no marriage alliance with them--Your daughter you must not give to his son, and his daughter you must not take for your son. For he will turn your son from following me, and they will certainly serve other gods, and God's anger will indeed burn against you, and he will certainly destroy you in a hurry. On the other hand, this is what you should do to them--
Their altars you should pull down, and their sacred pillars you should break down, and their sacred poles you should put down, and their graven images you should burn with fire. For you are a holy people to your God Jehovah. It is you your God has chosen to become his people, a special property, out of all the peoples that are on the surface of the ground. It is not because of your being the most populous of all the peoples that God showed affection for you so that he chose you, for you were the least of all the peoples. But it was because of God's loving you, and because of his keeping the sworn statement that he had sworn to your forefathers (ancestors), that God brought you out with a strong hand, that he might redeem you from the house of slaves, from the hand of Pharaoh the king of Egypt. You well know that your God is the true God, the faithful God, keeping covenant and loving-kindness in the case of those who love him and those who keep his commandments to a 1000 generations, but repaying to his face the one who hates him by destroying him. He will not hesitate toward the one who hates him-- he will repay him to his face. And you must keep the commandment and the regulations and the judicial decisions that I am commanding you today by doing them. It must occur that because you continue listening to these judicial decisions and you do keep them and do carry them out, your God must keep toward you the covenant (relationship) and the loving-kindness about which he swore to your ancestors. And he will certainly love you and bless you and multiply you and bless the fruit of your belly and the fruit of your soil, your grain and your new wine and your oil, the young of your cows and the offspring of your flock, on the soil that he swore to your forefathers to give to you. The most blessed of all the peoples you will become. There will not prove to be in you a male or a female without offspring, nor among your domestic animals. Jehovah will certainly remove from you every sickness and as for all the evil diseases of Egypt that you have known, he will not place them upon you, and he will indeed put them upon all those who hate you. You must consume all the peoples whom your God is giving to you. Your eye must not feel sorry for them, and you must not serve their gods, because that will be a trap (noose) to you. In case you say in your heart--'These nations are too populous for me. How shall I be able to drive them away?' you must not be afraid of them. You should by all means remember what your God did to Pharaoh and all Egypt, the great provings that your eyes saw, and the signs and the miracles and the strong hand and outstretched arm with which your God brought you out. That is the way your God will do to all the peoples before whom you are afraid. Your God will also send the feeling of dejection upon them, until those perish who were let remain and who were hiding themselves from before you. You must not suffer a shock because of them, for God
your Jehovah is in your midst, a great fear-inspiring God. And your God will certainly push these nations away from before you little by little. You will not be allowed to finish them off quickly, for fear the wild beasts of the field may multiply against you. Your God will indeed abandon them to you and rout them with a great rout (retreat, defeated troop), until they are destroyed. He will certainly give their kings into your hand, and you must destroy their names from under the heavens. Nobody will take a firm stand against you, until you will have exterminated them. The graven images of their gods you should burn in the fire. You must not desire the silver and the gold upon them, nor indeed take it for yourself, for fear you may be entrapped by it, for it is a thing hated by your God. You must not bring a detestable thing into your house and actually become a thing devoted to destruction like it. You should thoroughly loathe (hate) it and absolutely detest it, because it is something devoted to destruction. 8 Every commandment I am commanding you today, you should be careful to keep, in order that you may continue living and indeed multiply and go in and own the land about which God swore to your ancestors. You must remember all the way that your God made you walk these 40 years in the wilderness, in order to humble you, to put you to the test so as to know what was in your heart, as to whether you would keep his commandments or not. So he humbled you and let you go hungry and fed you with the manna, which neither you had known nor your fathers had known, in order to make you know that not by bread alone does man live but by every expression word of God's mouth does man live. Your mantle, clothes did not wear out upon you, nor did your foot become swollen these 40 years. You well know with your own heart that just as a man corrects his son, your God was correcting you. You must keep the commandments of your God by walking in his ways and by fearing him. For your God is bringing you into a good land, a land of torrent valleys of water, springs and watery deep issuing forth in the valley plain and in the mountainous region, a land of wheat and barley and vines and figs and pomegranates, a land of oil olives and honey, a land in which you will not eat bread with scarcity, in which you will lack nothing, a land the stones of which are iron and out of the mountains of which you will mine copper. When you have eaten and satisfied yourself, you must also bless your God for the good land that he has given you. Watch out for yourself that you may not forget your God so as not to keep his commandments and his judicial decisions and his statutes that I am commanding you today, for fear that you may eat and indeed satisfy yourself, and you may build good houses and indeed live in them, and your herd and your flock may increase, for silver and gold may increase for you, and all that is yours may increase -- and your heart indeed be lifted up and you may indeed forget your God, who brought
you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slaves, who caused you to walk through the great and fear-inspiring wilderness, with poisonous serpents and scorpions and with thirsty ground that has no water--who brought forth water for you out of the stony rock--who fed you with manna in the wilderness, which your father had not known, in order to humble you and in order to put you to the test so as to do you good in your afterdays--and you do say in your heart, 'My own power and the full might of my own hand have made this wealth for me.' You must remember your God, because he is the giver of power to you to make wealth, in order to carry out his covenant that he swore to your forefathers, as at this day. It must occur that if you should at all forget your God and you should actually walk after other gods and serve them and bow down to them, I do bear witness against you today that you people will absolutely perish. Like the nations that God is destroying from before you, that is the way you will perish, because you will not listen to the voice of your God. 9 "Hear O Israel, you are today crossing the Jordan to go in and dispossess/disown nations greater and mightier than you, cities great and fortified to the heavens, a people great and tall, the sons of Anakim, about whom you yourself have known and you yourself have heard it said, 'Who can make a firm stand before the sons of Anak? And you well know today that your God is crossing before you. A consuming fire he is. He will destroy them, and he himself will subdue them before you and you must disown them and destroy them speedily, just as God has spoken to you. Don't say in your heart when your God pushes them away from before you this, 'It was for my own righteousness that God has brought me in to take possession of this land,' whereas it is for the wickedness of these nations that God is driving them away from before you. It is not for your righteousness or for the uprightness of your heart that you are going in to take ownership of their land, in fact, it is for the wickedness of these nations that your God is driving them away from before you, and in order to carry out the word that God swore your ancestors, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. You must know that it is not for your righteousness that your God is giving you this good land to own it, for you are a stiff-necked people (stubborn, selfish, uncompromising). Remember--Do not forget how you have provoked your God in the wilderness. From the day that you went out of the land of Egypt until your coming to this place you people have proved rebellious in your behavior with God. Even in Horeb you provoked God to anger so that God got enraged at you to the point of destroying you. When I went up the mountain to receive the stone tablets, the tablets of the covenant that God had concluded with you, and I kept living in the mountain 40 days and 40 nights, (I neither ate bread nor drank water) then God gave me the 2 tablets of stone written upon with God's finger, and upon them were all the words that God
had spoken with you in the mountain out of the middle of the fire in the day of the congregation. It was about at the end of the 40 days and 40 nights God gave me the 2 tablets of stone, the tablets of the covenant, and God proceeded to say to me, 'Get up, go down quickly from here, because your people whom you brought out of Egypt have acted ruinously. They have turned away quickly from the way about which I commanded them. They have made themselves a molten image. God went on to say this to me, 'I have seen this people, and look! it is a stiff necked (not listening) people. Let me alone that I may destroy them and wipe out their name from under the heavens, and let me make you a nation mightier and more populous than they are.' After that I turned and went down from the mountain, while the mountain was burning with fire, and the 2 tablets of the covenant were in both my hands. Then I looked, and there you had sinned against your God. You had made yourselves a molten calf. You had turned away quickly from the way about which God had commanded you. At that I took hold of the 2 tablets and flung them down from both my hands and shattered them before your eyes. I proceeded to prostrate myself before God, as at first, 40 days and 40 nights. I neither ate bread nor drank water, because of all your sin that you had committed in doing evil in the eyes of God so as to offend him. For I was scared because of the hot anger with which God had got resentful at you to the point of destroying you. However, God listened to me also that time. At Aaron too, God got very enraged to the point of destroying him, but I made supplication (begging earnestly) also in behalf of Aaron at that particular time. Your sin that you had made, the calf, I took, and I proceeded to burn it in the fire and to crush it, grinding it thoroughly until it had become fine like dust--after which I threw its dust into the flood that was descending (coming down) from the mountain. Further at Taberah and at Massah and at Kibrothhattaavah you proved yourselves provokers of God to anger. When God sent you out of Kadeshbarnea, saying-- 'Go up and take the land that I certainly shall give you!' then you behaved rebelliously against the order of your God, and you did not exercise faith toward him and did not listen to his voice. You have proved yourselves rebellious in behavior with God from the day of my knowing you. So I kept prostrating myself before God 40 days and 40 nights, for I prostrated myself because God talked of destroying you. I began to make supplication to God and to say--'O Sovereign Lord God, do not bring to ruin your people, even your private properties whom you redeemed with your greatness, whom you brought out of Egypt with a strong hand. Remember your servants Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Do not turn your face to the hardness of his people and their wickedness and their sin, for fear the land out of which you brought us may say--"Because God was unable to bring them into the land that he had promised them, and because he hated them he brought them out to put them to death in
the wilderness. They are too, your people and your private property whom you brought out with your great power and our outstretched arm. 10 At that particular time God said to me-- 'Carve for yourself 2 tablets of stone like the first ones, and come up to me into the mountain, and you must make an ark of wood for yourself. I shall write upon the tablets the words that appeared on the 1st tablets, which you shattered, and you must place them in the ark.' So I made an ark of acacia wood and carved 2 tablets of stone like the 1st ones and went up into the mountain, and two 2 tablets were in my hand. Then he wrote upon the tablets the same writing as the 1st, the Ten Words, which God had spoken to you in the mountain out of the middle of the fire in the day of the congregation--after which God gave them to me. Then I turned and went down from the mountain and placed the tablets in the ark that I had made, that they might continue there, just as God commanded me. The sons of Israel pulled away from Beeroth Benejaakan for Moserah. There Aaron died, and he got to be buried there, and Eleazar his son began to act as priest instead of him. From there they pulled away for Gudgodah and from Gudgodah for Jotbathah, a land of torrent valleys running with water. At that particular time God separated the tribe of Levi to carry the ark of God's covenant, to stand before God for ministering to him and to bless in his name until this day. That is why Levi has come to have no share and inheritance with his brothers. God is his inheritance, just as your God had said to him. And I --I stayed in the mountain the same as the first days, 40 days and 40 nights, and God proceeded to listen to me also on that occasion. God did not want to bring you to ruin. The God said to me--'Get up, go before the people for a pulling away, that they may go in and take the land that I have sworn to their ancestors to give to them. Now O Israel, what is your God asking of you but to fear your God, so as to walk in all his ways and to love him and to serve your God with all your heart and all your soul, to keep the commandments of God and his statutes that I am commanding you today, for your good? Behold, to your God belong the heavens, even the heavens of the heavens, the earth and all that is in it. Only to your ancestors did God get attached so as to love them, so that he chose their offspring after them, even you, out of all the peoples, this day. You must circumcise the foreskin of your hearts and not harden your necks any longer. For your God is the God of gods and the Lord of lords, the God great, mighty and fear-inspiring, who treats none with partiality nor accepts a bribe, executing judgment for the fatherless boy and the widow and loving the alien resident so as to give him bread and a mantle. You too must love the alien resident, for you became alien residents in Egypt.
Jehovah your God you should fear. Him you should serve and to Him you should cling and by His name you should make sworn statements. He is One for you to praise, and he is your God, who has done with you these great fear-inspiring things that your eyes have seen. With 70 souls your ancestors went down to Egypt, and how your God has constituted you like the stars of the heavens for multitude. 11 And you must love your God and keep your obligation to him and his statutes and his judicial decisions and his commandments always. And you well know today (for I don't address your sons who have not known and who have not seen the discipline of your God, his greatness, his strong hand and his outstretched arm, nor his signs and his deeds that he did in the midst of Egypt and to all his land--nor what he did to the military forces of Egypt, to his horses and his war chariots against the faces of which he made the waters of the Red Sea overflow when they were chasing after them, and God proceeded to destroy them till this day--nor what he has done to you in the wilderness until your coming to this place--nor what he did to Dathan and Abiram the sons of Eliab the son of Reuben, when the earth opened its mouth and proceeded to swallow them up and their households and their tents and every existing thing that stepped after them in he midst of all Israel)--for your eyes were the ones seeing all the great deeds of God that he did.
And you must keep the whole commandment that I am commanding you today, in order that you may grow strong and may indeed enter in and take the land to which you are crossing to take ownership of it, and in order that you may lengthen your days on the soil that God swore for your ancestors to give to them and their seed, a land flowing with milk and honey. For the land to which you are going to take, it is not like the land of Egypt out of which you came, where you used to sow your seed and you had to do irrigating (supply water) with your foot, like garden of vegetables. But the land to which you are crossing to own, is a land of mountains and valley plains. Of the rain of the heavens it drinks water, a land that your God is caring for. The eyes of your God are constantly upon it, from the beginning of the year to close of the year. It must occur that if you will without fail obey my commandments that I am commanding you today so as to love your God and to serve him with all your heart and all your soul, I also shall certainly give rain for your land at its appointed time, autumn rain and spring rain, and you will indeed gather your grain and your sweet wine and your oil. And I shall certainly give vegetation in your field for your domestic animals, and you will indeed eat and be satisfied. Watch out for yourselves for fear your heart may be tempted, and you do turn away and worship other gods and bow down to them, and God's anger does burn against you, and he does shut up the heavens so that no rain will occur and the
ground will not give its produce and you have to perish speedily from off the good land that God is giving you. You must apply these words of mine to your heart and your soul and bind them as a sign upon your hand, and they must serve as a frontlet band between your eyes. You must also teach them to your sons, so as to speak of them when you sit in your house and when you walk on the road and when you lie down and when you get up. You must write them upon the doorposts of your house and on your gates, in order that your sons may be many on the soil that God swore to your ancestors to give to them, as the days of the heavens over the earth. For if you strictly keep all this commandment that I am commanding you so as to do it, to love your God, to walk in all his ways and to cling to him. God also must drive away all these nations on account of you, and you will certainly dispossess nations greater and more numerous than you are. Every place on which the sole of your foot will tread will become yours. From the wilderness up to Lebanon, from the River, the river Euphrates, to the western sea your boundary will become. No man will make a firm stand against you. The dread of you and the fear of you your God will put before the face of all the land on which you will tread, just as he has promised you. See, I am putting before you today blessing and malediction (curse), the blessing, provided you will obey the commandments of your God that I am commanding you today--and the malediction, if you will not obey the commandments of your God and you do turn away from the way about which I am commanding you today, so as to walk after other gods whom you have not known. It must occur that when your God brings you into the land to which you are going to own it, you must also give the blessing upon Mount Gerizim and the malediction upon Mount Ebal. Are they not on the side of the Jordan toward the direction of the sunset, in the land of the Canaanites living in the Arabah, in front of Gilgal, beside the big trees of Moreh? For you are crossing the Jordan to go in and own the land that your God is giving you, and you must take possession of it and live in it. You must be careful to carry out all the regulations and the judicial decisions that I am putting before you today. 12 These are the regulations and the judicial decisions that you should be careful to carry out in the land that God of your ancestors will certainly allow you to take possession of, all the days that you are alive on the soil. You should absolutely destroy all the places where the nations whom you are dispossessing have served their gods, on the tall mountains and the hills and under every luxuriant tree. And you must pull down their altars and shatter their sacred pillars, and you should burn their scared poles in the fire and cut down the graven images of their gods, and you must destroy their names from that place.
"You must not do that way to God your Jehovah, but to the place that your God will choose out of all your tribes to place his name there, to have it reside, you will seek, and there you must come. There you must bring your burnt offerings and your sacrifices and your 10th parts and the contribution of your hand and your vow offerings and your voluntary offerings and the 1stborn ones of your herd and of your flock. There you must eat before your God and rejoice in every undertaking (pledge) promise of yours, you and your households, because your God has blessed you. You must not do according to all that we are doing here today, each one whatever is right in his own eyes, because you have not yet come into the resting-place and the inheritance that your God is giving you. You must cross the Jordan and live in the land that your God is giving you as a possession, and he will certainly give you rest from all your enemies round about, and you will indeed live in security. It must occur that the place that your God will choose to have his name live there is where you will bring all about which I am commanding you, your burnt offerings and your sacrifices, your 10th parts and the contribution of your hand and every choice of your vow offerings that you will vow to God. You must rejoice before your God, you and your sons and your daughters and your man slaves and your slave girls and the Levite who is inside your gates, because he has no share or inheritance with you. Watch out for yourself for fear you may offer up your burnt offerings in any other place you may see. But in the place that God will choose in one of your tribes is where you should offer up your burnt offering and there you should do all that I am ordering you. Only whenever your soul craves it you may slaughter, and you must eat meat according to the blessing of your God that he has given you, inside all your gates. the unclean one and the clean one may eat it, like the gazelle (antelope-deer like animal) and like the stag (male deer). Only the blood you must not eat. On the earth you should pour it out like water. You will not be allowed to eat inside your gates the 10th part of your grain or of your new wine or of your oil or the 1stborn ones of your herd and of your flock or any of your vow offerings that you will vow or your voluntary offerings or the contribution of your hand. But before your God you will eat it, in the place that your God will choose, you and your son and your daughter and your man slave and your slave girl and the Levite who is inside our gates and you must rejoice before your God in every undertaking of yours. Watch out for yourself that you may not abandon the Levite all your days on your soil. When your God will widen out your territory just as he has promised you, and you will be certain to say, 'Let me eat meat, because your soul craves to eat meat, whenever your soul craves it you may eat meat. In case the place that your God will choose to put his name there should be far away from you, you must then slaughter some of your herd of some of your flock that God
has given you, just as I have ordered you, and you must eat inside your gates whenever your soul craves it. Only in the way that the gazelle and the stag may be eaten, so you may eat it--the unclean one and the clean one together may eat it. Simply the firmly resolved not to eat the blood, because the blood is the soul and you must not eat the soul with the flesh. You must not eat it. You should pour it out upon the ground as water. You must not eat it, in order that it may go well with you and your sons after you, because you will do what is right in God's eyes. Merely your holy things that will become yours, and your vow offerings you should carry, and you must come to the place that God will choose. You must render up your burnt offerings, the flesh and the blood, upon the altar of your God and the blood of your sacrifices should be poured against the altar of your God, the flesh you may eat. Watch and you must obey all these words that I am commanding you, in order that it may go well with you and your sons after you to time indefinite because you will do what is good and right in the eyes of your God. When your God will cut off from before you the nations to whom you are going to dispossess them, you must also dispossess them and live in their land. Watch out for yourself for fear you may be entrapped after them, after they have been destroyed from before you, and for fear you may inquire respecting their gods, saying, 'How was it these nations used to serve their gods? And I, yes, I will do the same way.' You must not do that way to your God, for everything detestable to God that he does hate-- they have done to their gods, for even their sons and their daughters they regularly burn in the fire to their gods. Every word that I am ordering you is what you should be careful to do. You must not add to it nor take away from it. 13 In case a prophet of a dreamer of a dream arises in your midst and does give you a sign or a warning, and the sign of the omen does come true of which he spoke to you, saying,--'Let us walk after other gods, whom you have not known, and let us serve them, you must not listen to the words of that prophet or to the dreamer of that dream, because your God is testing you to know whether you are loving your God with all your heart and all your soul. After your God you should walk, and him you should fear, and his commandments you should keep and to his voice you should listen, and him you should serve, and to him you should cling. And that prophet or that dreamer of the dream should be put to death, because he has spoken of revolt against your God, who has brought you out of Egypt and has redeemed you from the house of slaves, to turn you away from the way in which your God has commanded you to walk, and you must clear out what is evil from your midst. In case your brother, the son of your mother, or your son or your daughter or your cherished wife or your companion who is like your own soul, should try to allure you to secrecy, saying--'Let us go and serve
other gods, whom you have not known, neither you nor your ancestors, some of the gods of the peoples who are all around you, the ones near you or those far away from you, from one end of the land to the other end of the land, you must not accede (submit, yield) to his wish or listen to him, nor should your eye feel sorry for him, nor must you feel compassion, nor cover him protectively, but you should kill him without fail. Your hand first of all should come upon him to put him to death, and the hand of all the people afterward. And you must stone him with stones, and he must die, because he has sought to turn you away from your God Jehovah, who has brought you out of Egypt, out of the house of slaves. Then all Israel will hear and become afraid, and they will not do anything like this bad thing again in your midst. In case you hear it said in one of your cities, which your God is giving you to live there. 'Good for-nothing men have gone out from your midst that they may try to turn away the people of their city, saying--"Let us go and serve other gods" whom you have not known,' you must also search and investigate and inquire thoroughly, and if the thing is established as the truth, this detestable thing has been done in your midst, you should without fail strike the people of that city with the edge of the sword. Devote it and everything that is in it, and its domestic animals, to destruction at the edge of the sword. All its spoil you should collect into the middle of its public square, and you must burn in the fire the city and all its spoil as a whole offering to your God, and it must become a heap of ruins to time indefinite. It should never be rebuilt. Nothing at all should stick to your hand of the thing made sacred by ban (forbid), in order that God may turn away from his burning anger and may indeed give you mercy and he may certainly show you mercy and multiply you, just as he has sworn to you ancestors. For you should listen to the voice of your God by keeping all his commandments that I am commanding you today, so as to do what is right in the eyes of your God. 14 Sons you are of Jehovah your God. You must not make cuttings upon yourselves or impose baldness on your foreheads for a dead person. For you are a holy people to your God, and God has chosen you to become his people, a special property, out of all the peoples who are on the surface of the ground. You must eat no detestable thing of any sort. This is the sort of animal that you may eat--the bull, the sheep and the goat, the stag and gazelle and roebuck (roe deer) and wild goat and antelope and wild sheep and chamois (agile goat-antelope), and every animal that splits the hoof and that forms a cleft into two hoofs, chewing the cud among animals. It you may eat. Only this sort you must not eat out of those that chew the cud or that split the hoof. The cloven-- the camel and the hare and the rock badger (rock rabbit), because they are chewers of the cud but do not split the hoof. They are unclean for you. The pig also, because it is a splitter of the hoof but there is no cud. It is unclean for you. None of their flesh must you eat, and their carcasses you must not touch. This sort out of everything that is in the waters you may eat--everything that has fins and
scales you may eat. And everything that has no fins and scales you must not eat. It is unclean for you. Any clean bird you may eat. But these are the ones of which you must not eat--the eagle and the osprey (similar to hawk) and the black vulture, the red kite and the black kite, the glede according to its kind, and every raven according to its kind, the ostrich, the owl and the gull, the falcon according to its kind, the little owl and the long-eared owl and the swan, the pelican, the vulture and the cormorant, the stork, the heron according to its kind, the hoopoe and the bat. And every winged swarming creature is unclean for you. They should not be eaten. Any clean flying creature you may eat. You must not eat any body already dead. To the alien resident who is inside your gates you may give it, and he must eat it, or there may be a selling of it to a foreigner, because you are a holy people to your God. You must not boil a kid (young goat) in its mother's milk. Without fail you should give a 10th of all the produce of your seed, that which comes forth of the field year by year. And before your God, in the place that he will choose to have his name live there, you must eat the 10th part of your grain, your new wine and your oil and the 1stborn ones of your herd and of your flock--in order that you may learn to fear your God always. Now in case the journey should be too long for you, because you will not be able to carry it, since the place that your God will choose to place his name there will be too far away for you, because your God will bless you, you must then turn it into money, and you must wrap the money up in your hand and travel to the place that your God will choose. You must also give the money for whatever your soul may crave in the way of cattle and sheep and goats and wine and intoxicating liquor and anything that your soul may ask of you--and you must eat there before your God and rejoice, you and your household. And the Levite who is inside your gates, you must not abandon him, for the he has no share or inheritance with you. At the end of 3 years you will bring out the entire 10th part of your produce in that year--and you must deposit it inside your gates. And the Levite, because he has no share or inheritance with you, and the alien resident and the fatherless boy and the widow, who are inside your gates, must come, and they must eat and satisfy themselves--in order that your God may bless you in every deed of your hand that you will do. 15 At the end of every 7 years you should make a release. This is the manner of the release--there will be a releasing by every creditor of the debt that he may let his fellow incur. He should not insists his fellow or his brother for payment, because a release to God must be called. The foreigner you may insist for payment, but whatever of yours may prove to be with your brother let your hand release. However, no one should come to be poor among you, because God will without fail bless you in the land that your God is giving you as an inheritance to take to own it, only if you will without fail listen to the
voice of your God so as to be careful to do all this commandment that I am commanding you today. For your God will indeed bless you just as he has promised you, and you will certainly lend on pledge to many nations, whereas you yourself will not borrow--and you must dominate over many nations, whereas over you they will not dominate. In case some one of your brothers becomes poor among you in one of your cities, in your land that your God is giving you, you must not harden your heart or be closefisted toward your poor brother. For you should generously open your hand to him and by all means lend him on pledge as much as he needs, which he is in need of. Watch out for yourself for fear a base word should come to be in your heart, saying--'The 7th year, the year of the release, has come close', and your eye should indeed become ungenerous toward your poor brother, and you should give him nothing, and he has to call out to God against you, and it has become a sin on your part. You should by all means give to him, and your heart should not be stingy in your giving to him, because on this account your God will bless you in every deed of yours and in every undertaking of yours. For someone poor will never cease to be in the midst of the land, that is why I am commanding you, saying--'You should generously open up your hand to your afflicted (troubled) and poor brother in your land.' In case there should be sold to you your brother, a Hebrew or a Hebrewess, and he has served you 6 years, then in the 7th year you should send him out from you as one set free. In case you should send him out from you as one set free, you must not send him out empty-handed. You should surely equip him with something from your flock and your threshing floor and your oil and wine-press. Just as your God has blessed you, you should give to him. And you must remember that you became a slave in Egypt and your God proceeded to redeem you. That is why I am commanding you this thing today. It must occur that in case he says to you--'I will not go out from your company because he does love you and your household, since it was well with him while with you, you must also take an needle and put it through his ear and to the door and he must become your slave to time indefinite. To your slave girl you should also do this way. It should not be some thing hard in your eyes when you send him out from your company as one set free--because for double the value of a hired laborer he served you 6 years, and your God has blessed you in everything that you would do. Every male 1stborn that will be born in your herd and in your flock you should sanctify to your God. You must do no service with the 1stborn of your bull, nor shear the 1stborn of your flock. Before your God you should eat it year by year in the place that God will choose, you and your household. In case there should prove to be in it a defect, being lame or blind, any bad defect, you must not sacrifice it to your God. Inside your gates you should eat it, the unclean one and the clean one together, like the gazelle and like the stag. Only its blood you must not eat. Upon
the earth you should pour it out like water. 16 Let there be an observing of the month of Abib and you must celebrate the passover to your God, because in the month of Abib your God brought you out of Egypt by night. You must sacrifice the passover to your God, of the flock and of the herd, in the place that God will choose to have his name live there. You must eat nothing leavened along with it for 7 days. You should eat along with it unfermented cakes, the bread of affliction, because it was in haste that you came out of Egypt, that you may remember the day of your coming out of Egypt all the days of your life. No sourdough should be seen with you in all your territory 7 days, neither should any of the animal, which you will sacrifice in the evening on the 1st day, stay all night until the morning. You will not be allowed to sacrifice the passover in any one of your cities that your God is giving you. But at the place that your God will choose to have his name live there, you should sacrifice the passover in the evening as soon as the sun sets, at the appointed time of your coming out of Egypt. You must do the cooking and the eating in the place that your God will choose, and in the morning you must turn around and go to your own tents. 6 days you should eat unfermented cakes, and on the 7th day there will be a solemn (formal and dignified) assembly to your God. You must do no work. 7 weeks you should count for yourself. From when the sickle is 1st put to cut the standing grain you will start to count 7 weeks. Then you must celebrate the festival of weeks to your God, according to the voluntary offering of your hand that you will give, just as your God may bless you. You must rejoice before your God, you and your son and your daughter and your man slave and girl, and the Levite who is inside your gates and the alien resident and the fatherless boy and the widow, who are in your midst, in the place that your God will choose to have his name live there. You must remember that you became a slave in Egypt, and you must observe and carry out these regulations. The festival of booths you should celebrate for yourself 7 days when you make an ingathering from your threshing floor (separating at harvest) and your oil and winepress. You must rejoice during your festival, you and your son and your daughter and your man slave and girl, and the Levite and the alien resident and the fatherless boy and the widow, who are inside your gate. 7 days you will celebrate the festival to your God in the place that God will choose, because your God will bless you in all your produce and in every deed of your hand, and you must become nothing but joyful. 3 times in the year every male of yours should appear before your God in the place that he will choose--in the festival of the unfermented cakes and in the festival of weeks and in the festival of booths, and none should appear before God empty handed. The gift of each one's hand should be in proportion to the blessing of your God that he has given you.
"You should set judges and officers for yourself inside all your gates that God is giving you by your tribes and they must judge the people by righteous judgments. You must not pervert judgement. You must not be partial or accept a bribe, for the bribe blinds the eyes of the wise ones and distorts the words of the righteous ones. Justice--justice you should pursue, in order that you may keep alive and may indeed take ownership of the land that your God is giving you. You must not for yourself plant any sort of tree as a sacred pole near the altar of your God Jehovah that you will make for yourself. Neither should you set up for yourself a sacred pillar the thing God hates indeed. 17 You must not sacrifice a bull or a sheep with a defect, anything bad--because it is something hateful to your God. In case there should be a man or a woman found in your midst in one of your cities who practices what is bad in the eyes of your God as to overstep his covenant, and he should go and worship other gods or bow down to them or to the sun or the moon or all the army of the heavens, a thing that I have not commanded, and it has been told to you and you heard it, and have searched thoroughly, and look! the thing has been established as the truth, this hateful, detestable thing has been done in Israel! You must also bring that man or woman who has done this bad thing out to the gates, and yes, that man or that woman you must stone, such one with stones, and such one must die. At the mouth of 2 or 3 witnesses, the one dying must be put to death. He will not be put to death at the mouth of 1 witness. The hand of witnesses 1st of all should come upon him to put him to death, and hand of all people afterward, and you must clear out what is bad from your midst. In case a matter for judicial decision is too extraordinary for you in which there was a blood shed (murder) in which a legal claim has been raised, or a violent deed has been committed, matters of disputes, inside your gates, you must also rise and go up to the place that your God will choose, and you must go to your priests, the Levites, to the judge who will be acting in those days, and you must take inquiry, and they must hand down to you the word of judicial decision. You must do in accordance with the word that they hand down to you from that place that your God will choose, and you must be careful to do according to all that they instruct you. In accordance with the law that they will point out to you and according to the judicial decisions that they will say to you, you should do. You must not turn away from the word that they will hand down to you, to the right or to the left. And the man who will behave with presumptuousness (assume, audacity) in not listening to the priest who is standing to minister there to your God or to the judge, that man must die, and you must clear out what is bad from Israel. And all the people will hear and become afraid, and
they will not act presumptuously anymore. When you eventually come to the land that your God is giving you, and you have taken ownership of it, and have lived in it and have said -- 'let me set a king over myself like all the nations who are around about me'. You will without fail set over yourself a king whom your God will choose. From among your brothers you should set a king over yourself. You will not be allowed to put over yourself a foreigner who is not your brother. Only he should not increase horses for himself, nor make people go back to Egypt in order to increase horses, whereas God has said--'never go back again by this way.' He also must not multiply wives for himself, that his heart may not turn away, nor should he increase silver and gold for himself very much. It must occur that when he takes his seat on the throne of his kingdom, he must write in a book for himself a copy of this law from that which is in the charge of the priests, the Levites. It must continue with him and he must read in it all the days of his life in order that he may learn to fear Jehovah his God so as to keep all the words of this law and these regulations by doing them, that his heart must not glorify itself above his brothers, and he may not turn away from the commandments to the right or to the left, in order that he may lengthen his days upon his kingdom, he and his sons in the midst of Israel. 18 No share or inheritance with Israel should come to belong to the priests, the Levites, the entire tribe of Levi. The offerings made by fire of God, even his inheritance, they should eat. So no inheritance should come to belong to him in the midst of his brothers. God is his inheritance just as he has spoken to him. Now this should continue as due right of the priests from the people, from the one who sacrifice a victim, whether a bull or a sheep--One must give to the priest the shoulder blade, the jaws and the stomach. The first of your grain. your new wine and your oil, and first of your shorn wool of your flock you should give him. He is the one whom your God has chosen out of all your tribes to stand to minister in the name of Jehovah, he and his sons, always. In case the Levite goes out of one of your cities of all Israel, where he had resided for a while, and he does come because of any craving of his soul to the place that God will choose, he will also minister in the name of God his Jehovah the same as all his brothers, the Levites, who are standing there before God. An equal share he should eat, besides what he gets from things he sells of his ancestral goods. When you are entered into the land that your God is giving you, you must not learn to do according to the detestable things of those nations. There should not be found in you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, anyone employs divination, practicer of magic, or anyone who looks for omens or sorcerer (witch), or one who binds others with spell or anyone who consults a spirit medium or professional foreteller of events or anyone who inquires of the dead. For everybody
doing these things is something hateful to God and on account of these hateful things, your God is driving them away from before you. You should prove yourself faultless with your God. For these nations whom you are disowning, used to listen to those practicing magic and to those who divine, but as for you -- your God has not given you anything like this. A prophet from your own midst, from your brothers, like me, is what your God will rise up for you--to him you people should listen--in response to all that you asked of your God in Horeb on the day of the congregation, saying--'Do not let me hear again the voice of Jehovah my God, and this great fire don't let me see anymore so I may not die. At that God said to me--'They have done right speaking what they did. A prophet I will rise up from midst of their brothers, like you, and I will indeed put words in his mouth, and he will certainly speak to them all that I shall command him. It must occur that the man who will not listen to my words that he will speak in my name, I shall myself require an account from him. However, the prophet who presumes to speak in my name a word that I have not commanded him to speak or speaks in the name of other gods, that prophet must die. In case you should say in your heart--"how would we know the word that God has not spoken?" when the prophet speaks in the name of God Jehovah and the word does not occur or come true--that is the word that God did not speak. With presumptuousness (unjustified claims) the prophet spoke it. You must not get frightened at him.' 19 When your God cuts off the nations whose land your God is giving you, and you have disowned them and have lived in their cities and houses, you will set apart 3 cities in the midst of your land that your God is giving you to own it. You will prepare yourself the way and you must divide up the territory of your land that your God proceeded to give you as possession into 3 parts, it must be for any manslayer (killer) to flee there. Now this is the case of the manslayer who may flee there and has to live--When he strikes a fellowman without knowing it and he is no hater of him formerly or when he goes with fellowman into the woods to gather wood and his hand has been raised to strike with ax to cut the tree, but the iron has slipped off from wooden handle and it hits fellowman and he died. He himself should flee to one of these cities and must live. Otherwise the avenger of blood may (because his heart is hot) chase after manslayer and actually overtake him, since the way is great--and indeed he may strike his soul fatally, whereas there is no sentence of death for him because he was no hater of him formerly. That is why I am ordering you, saying--'3 cities you will set apart for yourself' And your God widens out your territory according to what he swore to your ancestors, and he has given you all the land that he promised to give to your ancestors, because you will keep all this commandment that I am commanding
you today by doing it, to love your God Jehovah and walk in his ways always. then you must add 3 other cities for yourself to these 3, that no innocent blood will be spilled in midst of your land that your God is giving you as inheritance, and no bloodguilt has to be upon you. But in case there should be a man hating his fellowman, and he has lain in wait for him and has risen up against him and struck his soul fatally and he died, and the man has fled to one of these cities, older men of his city must then send and take him from there, and they must deliver him into the land of the avenger of blood and he must die. Your eye should not feel sorry for him and you must clear away the guilt of innocent blood out of Israel, that you may have good. You must not move back the boundary marks of your fellowman, when the ancestors will have set the boundaries in your inheritance that you will inherit in the land that your God is giving you to take ownership of it. No single witness should rise up against a man respecting any error or any sin, in the case of any sin that he may commit. At the mouth of 2 witnesses or at the mouth of 3 witnesses the matter should stand good. In case of a witness scheming violence should rise up against a man to bring a charge of revolt against him, the 2 men who have the dispute must also stand before God, before the priests, judges who will be acting in those days. Judges must search thoroughly, and if the witness is a false witness and has brought a false charge against his brother, you must also do to him just as he had schemed to do to his brother, and you must clear away bad from your midst. So those who remain will hear and be afraid, and they never again do anything bad like this in your midst. Your eye should not feel sorry--soul will be for soul, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot. 20 In case you go out to battle against your enemies and you actually see horses and war chariots, a people more numerous than you, you must not be afraid of them--For your God is with you, who brought you up out of Egypt. It must occur that when you have drawn near to the battle, the priest must also approach and speak to the people. He must say to them--"Hear O Israel, you are drawing near today to the battle against your enemies. Do not let your hearts be timid. Do not be afraid and run in panic or shudder because of them, for your God is marching with you to fight for you against your enemies to save you.' The officers too must speak to the people, saying--"Who is the man that has built a new house and has not inaugurated it? Let him go and return to his house, for fear he may die in the battle and another man should inaugurate it. Who is the man who has planted a vineyard not begun to use it? Let him go and return to his house, for fear that he may die in the battle and another man should begin to use it. Who is the man that has become engaged to a woman and has not taken her? Let him go and return to his house, for fear he may
die in the battle and another man should take her.' And the officer should speak further to the people and say--'Who is the man that is fearful and fainthearted? Let him go and return to his house, that he may not cause the hearts of his brothers to melt as his own heart. It must occur that when the officers have finished speaking to the people, they must also appoint the chiefs of the armies at the head of the people. In case you draw near to a city to fight against it, you must also announce it terms of peace. It must occur that if it gives peaceful answer to you and opened up to you, it must even occur that all the people found in it should become yours for forced labor, and they must serve you. But if it does not make peace with you, and actually makes war with you and you have to besiege it. Your God will certainly also give it into your hand, and you must strike every male in it with the edge of the sword. Only the women and little children and domestic animals and everything that happens to be in the city, all its spoil (damage, remainder of battle) you will plunder (raid) for yourself, and you must eat the spoil of your enemies, whom your God has given you. That is the way you will do to all the cities very far away from you that are not of the cities of these nations. It is only of these cities of these people that your God is giving you as inheritance that you must not keep any breathing thing alive, because you should without fail devote them to destruction, Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, Jebusites, just as your God has ordered you, in order that they may not teach you to do according to all their detestable things, which they have done to their gods, and you may indeed sin against your God Jehovah. In case you lay siege to a city many days by fighting against it so as to capture it, you must not ruin its trees by wielding an ax against them--for you should eat from them, and you must not cut them down, for is the tree of the field a man to be sieged by you? Only a tree that you know that is not a tree for food, it is the one you should ruin, and you must cut it down and build siegeworks against the city that is making war with you, until it falls. 21 In case someone is found slain (killed) on the ground that your God is giving you to own it, fallen on the field, and it has not become known who struck him fatally, your older men and your judges must also go out and measure to the cities that are all around the killed one--and it must prove to be city nearest to the killed one. And older men of that city must take a young cow of the herd that has not been worked with, that has not pulled in a yoke--and older men of that city must lead the young cow down to a torrent valley running with water in which there was customarily no tilling or sowing of seed, and they must break the neck of young cow there in the torrent valley. The priests the sons of Levi must approach, because they are the ones your God has chosen to minister to him and to bless in the name of Jehovah and at whose mouth every dispute over every violent deed should be disposed of. Then all older men of that city who are nearest to the killed one should wash their hands over the young cow, the neck of
which was broken in the torrent valley, and they must answer and say--'Our hands did not shed this blood, neither did our eyes see it shed. Do not set it to the account of your people Israel, whom you redeemed. O God, and do not put innocent blood in the midst of your people Israel. And the bloodguilt must not be set to their account. And you--you will clear away the guilt of innocent blood from your midst, because you will do what is right in God's eyes. In case you go out to the battle against your enemies and your God has given them into your hand, and you have carried them away captive, and you have seen among the captives a woman beautiful in form, and got attached to her and taken her as a wife, you must then bring her into midst of your house. She must shave her head and attend to her nails, and remove the mantle of her captivity from off her and live in your house and weep for her father and mother for whole moon month, and after that you should have relations with her, and you must own her as your bride and she must become your wife. And it must occur that if you found no delight in her, then you must send her away, agreeably to her own soul, but you must by no means sell her for money.
You must not deal unjustly cruel or harshly after you have humiliated her, In case a man comes to have 2 wives, the one loved and other hated, and they--loved one and hated one gave birth to sons to him and the firstborn was from hated one, it must also occur that in the day that he gives as an inheritance to his sons what he happens to have, he will not be allowed to constitute the son of loved one his 1stborn at the expense of hated one's son, the 1stborn. For he should recognize as the firstborn the hated one's son by giving him 2 parts in everything he is found to have, because that one is the beginning of his generative power. The right of firstborn's position belongs to him. In case a man has a son who is stubborn and rebellious--not listening to voices of his father or mother and have corrected him but he will not listen to them, his father and mother also must take hold of him and bring him out to the older men of his city and to the gate of his place and they must say to the older men of his city--'This son of ours is stubborn and rebellious, he is not listening to our voices being a glutton (greedy, excessive eating) and a drunkard. Then all the men of the city must pelt him with stones and he must die. So you must clear away what is bad from your midst, and all Israel will hear and become afraid. In case there comes to be in a man a sin deserving the sentence of death, and you have hanged him upon a stake, his dead body should not stay all night on the stake, but you should by all means bury him on that day because something cursed by God is the one who is hanged and you must not defile your soil which your God is giving you as inheritance. 22 You must not see the bull of your brother or his sheep straying about and deliberately withdraw from them. You should by all means lead them back to your brother. And if your brother is not near
you and you have not got to know him, you must also bring it home into the midst of your house and it must continue with you until your brother has searched for it. And you must return it to him, That is the way too that you will do with his donkey, his mantle and anything that is lost of your brother's, which has lost from him, which you have found. You will be not allowed to withdraw yourself. You must not see the donkey of your brother or his bull fall down on the road and deliberately withdraw from them. You should by all means help him raise them up. No clothes of abled-bodied man be put upon a woman, neither should an abled-bodied man wear the mantle of a woman--for anybody doing these things are something detestable (hateful) to your God. In case a bird's nest happens to be before you in the way, in any tree or on the earth with young ones or eggs, and the mother is sitting upon the young ones or the eggs, you must not take the mother along with the offspring, you should by all means send mother away, but may take offspring for yourself, in order that it may go well with you, and you may indeed lengthen your days. In case you build a new house, you must also make a wall for your roof, that you may not place bloodguilt upon your house because someone falling might fall from it. You must not sow your vineyard with 2 sorts of seed, for fear that the full produce of the seed that you might sow and the product of the vineyard may be forfeited (lose, deprived) to the sanctuary (holy place that provides protection). You must not sow with a bull and a donkey together. You must not wear mixed stuff of wool and linen together. You must make tassels for yourself on the 4 extremities of your clothing which you cover yourself. In case a man takes a wife and actually has relations with her and has come to hate her, and he charged her with notorious deeds and brought forth a bad name upon her and said--"This is the woman I have taken, and I proceeded to go near her, and I did not find evidence of virginity in her, the father of the girl and her mother must also take and bring forth the evidence of girl's virginity to the older men of the city at the gate of it, and the girl's father must say to the older men--'I gave my daughter as his wife and he went hating her. And he is charging her with notorious deeds, saying--"I have found your daughter does not have evidence of virginity" Now this is the evidence of my daughter's virginity' And they must spread out the mantle before older men of the city. And older men of that city must take the man and discipline him. And they must fine him 100 silver shekels (money) and give them to the girl's father, because he brought forth a bad name upon a virgin of Israel and she will continue to be his wife. He will not be allowed to divorce her all his days. If, though, this thing has proved to be the truth, evidence of virginity was not found in the girl, they must also bring the girl out to the entrance of her father's house, and the men of the city must pelt her with stones and she must die, because she has committed disgraceful folly in Israel by committing prostitution in the house of her father. So you must clear
away what is bad from your midst. In case a man is found lying down with a woman owned by a owner, both of them then must die together--the man lying down with woman and the woman. So you must clear away what is bad out of Israel. In case there happened to be a virgin girl engaged to a man, and a man actually found her in the city and lay down with her, you must also bring them both out to the gate of that city and pelt them with stones, and they must die-- the girl for the reason that she did not scream in the city, and man for the reason that he humiliated wife of a fellowman. So you must clear away what is evil from your midst. If however, it is in the field that the man found the girl who was engaged, and the man grabbed hold of her and lay down with her, the man who lay down with her also must die by himself, and to the girl you must do nothing. The girl has no sin deserving of death, because just as when a man rises up against his fellowman and indeed murders him, even a soul, so it is with this case. For it was in the field that he found her. The girl who was engaged screamed, but there was no one to rescue her. In case a man finds a girl, a virgin who was has not been engaged, and actually sieges her and lies down with her, and they have been found out, the man who lay down with her also must give girl's father 50 silver shekels, and she will become his wife due to the fact that he humiliated her. He will not be allowed to divorce her all his days. No man should take his father's wife, that he may not uncover the skirt of his father. 23 No man castrated by crushing his testicles or having his male member cut off may come into the congregation of God. No illegitimate son may come into the congregation of God. Even to the 10th generation--none of his may come into the congregation of God. No Ammonite or Moabite may come into the congregation of God. Even to the 10th generation--none of theirs may come into the congregation of God to time indefinite, for the reason that they did not come to your aid with bread and water in the way when you are going out of Egypt, and because they hired against you Balaam the son of Beor from Pethor of Mesopotamia to call down evil upon you. Your God did not want to listen to Baalam. but your God changed malediction/curse into a blessing, because your God Jehovah loved you. You must not hate an Edomite for he is your brother. You must not hate an Egyptian for you became an alien in his country. The sons that may be bore to them as the 3rd generation may come for themselves into the congregation of God. In case you go out into the camp against your enemies, you must also keep yourself from every bad thing. In case there happens to be in you a man who does not constitute clean, because of the pollution that occurs at night, he must also go outside the camp. He may not come into the midst of the camp. It must occur at the falling of evening--he should wash with water, and at the setting of the
sun he may come into the midst of the camp. And a private place should be at your service outside the camp, and you must go out there. And a peg should be at your service along with your implements, and it must occur when you squat outside, you must also dig a hole with it and turn and cover your human feces. For God is walking about within your camp to deliver you, and to abandon your enemies to you, and your camp must prove to be holy--that he may see nothing indecent in you and certainly turn away from accompanying you. You must not hand over a slave to his master when he escapes from his master to you. With you he will keep on living in among you in whatever place he may choose in one of your cities, wherever he likes. You must not maltreat him. None of the daughters of Israel may become a temple prostitute, neither may anyone of the sons of Israel become a temple prostitute. You must not bring the hire of a harlot or the price of a dog into the house of your God for any vow, because they are something detestable to your God, even both of them. You must not make your brother pay interest, interest on money, interest on food, interest on anything on which one may claim interest. You may make a foreigner pay interest, but your brother you must not make pay interest, in order that your God may bless you in every undertaking of yours on the land to which you are going so as to take ownership of it. In case you vow a vow to your God, you must not be slow about paying it, because your God will without fail require it of you, and it would indeed become a sin on you part. The utterance of your lips you should keep, and you must do just as you have vowed to your God as a voluntary offering that you spoke of it with your mouth. In case you go into the standing grain of your fellowman, you must pluck off only the ripe ears with your hand, but the sickle you must not swing to and fro upon the standing grain of your fellowman. 24 In case a man takes a woman and does make her his possession as a wife, it must also occur that if she should find no favor in his eyes because he has found something indecent on her part, he must also write out a certificate of a divorce for her and put it in her hand and dismiss her from his house. She must go out of his house and go to another man's. If the latter man has come to hate her and has written out a certificate of a divorce and put it in her hand and dismissed her from his house, or in this case the latter man who took her as his wife should die, the first owner of her who dismissed her will not be allowed to take her back again to become his wife after she has been defiled, for that is something detestable before God, and you must not lead the land that your God is giving you as an inheritance into sin. In case a man takes a new wife, he should not go out into
the army, nor should anything else be imposed onto him. He should continue exempt at his house for one year, and he must make his wife whom he has taken rejoice. No one should siege a hand mill or upper grindstone as a pledge, because it is a soul that he is seizing as a pledge. In case a man is found kidnapping a soul of his brothers of the sons of Israel, and he has dealt tyrannically (cruel, harshly) with him and sold him, that kidnapper must also die. And you must clear away what is bad from your midst. Be on your guard in the plague of leprosy to take good care and do according to all that the priests, the Levites, will instruct you. Just as I have ordered them, you should be careful to do. There should be a remembering of what your God did to the Miriam in the way when you were coming out of Egypt. In case you lend your fellowman a loan of any sort, you must not enter into his house to take what he has pledged. You should stand outside, and man to whom you are making a loan should bring the pledge outside to you. If the man is in trouble, you must not go to bed with his pledge. You should by all means return the pledge to him as soon as the sun sets, and he must go to bed in his clothes, and he must bless you and it will mean righteousness for you before your God. You must not defraud (cheat, swindle, deceive) your hired worker who is in trouble and poor, whether of your brothers or of alien residents in your land within your gates. In his day you should give him his wages, and the sun should not set upon them, because he is in trouble and he is lifting up his soul to his wages that he may not cry to God against you and it must become a sin on your part. Fathers should not be put to death on account of children and children should not be put to death account of their fathers. Each one should be put to death for his own sin. You must not pervert the judgment of alien resident or the fatherless boy and you must not take the clothes of a widow as pledge. And you must remember you became a slave in Egypt, and your God proceeded to redeem you from there. That's why I am ordering you to do this thing. It case you reap your harvest in your field and you have forgotten a sheaf in the field, you must not go back to get it. It should stay for the alien resident, for the fatherless boy and for the widow. In case you gather the grapes of your vineyard, you must not gather the leftovers following up yourself. They should stay for the alien resident for the fatherless boy and for the widow. You must remember that you became a slave in the land of Egypt. That's why I am ordering you to do this thing. 25 In case a dispute arises between men, and they have presented themselves for the judgment, they must also
judge them and pronounce the righteous one righteous and pronounce the wicked one wicked. It must occur that if the wicked one deserves to be beaten, the judge must also have him laid prostrate (lay face down arms stretched on the ground) and given strokes before him by number to correspond with his wicked deed. With 40 strokes he may beat him. He should add none, for fear he should continue to beat him with many strokes in addition to these and your brother is actually disgraced in your eyes. You must not muzzle a bull while it is threshing (loosening the grains). In case brothers live together and one of them has died without his having a son, the wife of the dead one should not become a strange man's outside. Her brother in law should go to her, and he must take her as his wife and perform brother in law marriage with her. It must occur that the firstborn whom she will bear should succeed to the name of his dead brother, that his name may not be wiped out of Israel. Now if the man finds no delight in taking his brother's widow, his brother's widow must then go up the gate to the older men and say--'My husband's brother has refused to preserve his brother's name in Israel. He has not consented to perform brother in law marriage with me.' The older men of his city must call him and speak to him, and he must stand and say--'I have found no delight in taking her.' At that his brother's widow must approach him before the eyes of the older men and draw his sandal off his foot and spit in his face and answer and say--'That is the way it should be done to the man who will not build up his brother's household.' His name must be called in Israel 'The house of the one who had his sandal drawn off.' In case men struggle together with one another, and the wife of the one has come near to deliver her husband out of the hand of the one striking him, and she has thrust out her hand and grabbed hold of him by his privates, you must then amputate her hand. Your eye must feel no sorrow. You must not come to have in your bag 2 sorts of weights, a great one and a small one. You must not have in your house -- 2 sorts of ephahs, great one and small one. A weight accurate and just you should continue to have. An ephah (35 liter) accurate and just you should continue to have, in order that your days may become long on the soil that your God is giving you. For everyone doing these things, every doer of injustice, is something hateful to your God. There should be remembering of what Amalek did to you in the way when you were coming out of Egypt, how he met you in the way and proceeded to strike in the rear of you all those straggling after you, while you were exhausted and weary, he did not fear God. It must occur that when your God has given you rest from all of your enemies round about in the land that your God is giving you as an inheritance to take ownership of it, you should wipe out the mention of Amalek from under the heavens. You must not forget. 26 It must occur that at last you enter into the land that your God is giving you as an inheritance and you have taken it and lived in it, you must also take some of the 1stfruits of all the fruitage of the soil,
which you will bring in from the land that your God is giving you, and you must put them in a basket and go to the place that your God will choose to have his name live there. You must come to the priest who will be acting in those days and say to him--'I must report today to your God that I have come into the land that God swore to our ancestors to give to us.' The priest must take the basket out of your hand and deposit it before the altar of your God. You must answer and say before your God--'My father was a perishing Syrian, and he proceeded to go down to Egypt and to live there as an alien with very few in number, but there he became a great nation, mighty and numerous. The Egyptians went treating us badly and afflicting us and putting hard slavery upon us. We began to cry out to Jehovah the God of our ancestors and God proceeded to hear our voice-- look on our affliction (suffering), troubles and oppression. Finally our God brought us out of Egypt with a strong hand, outstretched arm and with great fearsomeness and with signs and miracles. Then he brought us to this place and gave us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey. Now here I have brought the firstfruits of the fruitage of the ground that God has given me. You must also deposit it before your God and bow down before your God. You must rejoice over all the good that your God has given you and your household, you and the Levite, and the alien resident who is in your midst. When you are finish with your tithing (giving 10th of income to the church) the entire 10th of your produce in the 3rd year, the year of the 10th, you must also give it to the Levite, the alien resident, the fatherless boy, and the widow, and they must eat it within the gates and satisfy themselves. You must say before your God--'I have cleared away what is holy from the house and I have also given it to the Levite, the alien resident, the fatherless boy and the widow, in accord to all the commandment that you ordered me. I have not overstepped your commandment nor have I forgotten. I haven't eaten of it during morning nor have I removed any of it while unclean, nor have I given any of it to anyone dead. I have listen to the voice of my God. I have done in accord all that you have ordered me. Do look down from your holy living, the heavens, and bless your people Israel and the soil that you have given us, just as swore to our ancestors, the land flowing with milk and honey. This is the day your God is ordering you to carry out these regulations and judicial decisions, and you must observe and carry them out with all your heart and soul. Jehovah you have induced to say today that he will become your God while you walk in his ways and observe his regulations and commandments, judicial decisions and listen to his voice. As for God, he has induced you to say today that you will become his people, a special property, just as he promised you, that you will observe all his commandments, and that he will put you high above
all the other nations that he has made, resulting in praise and reputation and beauty, while you prove yourself a people holy to your God, just as he has promised. 27 Moses together with the older men of Israel went on to command the people, saying--"There should be an observing of every commandment that I am ordering you today. It must occur that in the day when you will cross the Jordan into the land that your God is giving you, you must also set up for yourself great stones and whitewash them with lime. You must write upon them all the words of this law when you have crossed, in order that you may enter into the land that your God is giving you, a land flowing with milk and honey, according to what your God of your ancestors has spoken to you. It must occur when you have crossed the Jordan, you should set up these stones, just as I am ordering you today, in Mount Ebal and you must whitewash them with lime. You must also build an altar there to your God, an altar of stones. You must not wield an iron tool upon them. With whole stones you should build the altar of your God, and you must offer burnt offerings to your God upon it. You must sacrifice communion sacrifices and eat them there, and you must rejoice before your God. You must write on the stones all the words of this law, making them quite clear. Then Moses and the priests, and the Levites spoke to all Israel, saying--Keep silent and listen O Israel. Today you have become the people of your God Jehovah. You must listen to the voice of your God and carry out his commandments and his reputations, which I am commanding you today. Moses went on to command the people on that day, saying--'The following are the ones who will stand to bless the people on Mount Gerizim when you have crossed the Jordan--Simeon, Levi and Judah, Issachar, Joseph and Benjamin. And the following are the ones who will stand for the malediction on Mount Ebal--Reuben, Gad and Asher, Zebulun, Dan and Naphtali. Levites must answer and say with raised voice and say to every men of Israel--"Cursed is the man who makes a carved image or a molten statue, a thing hateful to God, a manufacturer of the hands of wood-and-metal worker, and who has put it to a hiding place (All the people must answer and say Amen!) Cursed is the one who lies with his father's wife, because he has uncovered the skirt of his father.' (All the people must say Amen!) Cursed is anyone who lies down with any beast, animal (All the people must say Amen!)
Cursed is the one who lies down with his sister, the daughter of his father or the daughter of his mother (All the people must say Amen!) Cursed is the one who lies down with his mother in law (All the people must say Amen!) Cursed is the one who fatally strikes a fellowman from a hiding place (All the people must say Amen!) Cursed is the one who accepts a bribe to strike a soul (person) fatally, when it is a innocent blood (All the people must say Amen!) Cursed is the one who will not put words of this law in force by doing them (All the people must say Amen!) 28 It must occur if you without fail listen to the voice your God by being careful to do all his commandments that I am commanding you today, your God will certainly put you high above all other nations of the earth. All these blessings must come upon you and overtake you, because you keep listening to the voice your God. Blessed you will be in the city and in the field. Blessed is the fruit of your belly and fruit of your ground and fruit of domestic beasts, young of your cattle and offspring of your flock. Blessed is your basket and your kneading trough. Blessed you will be when you come in, and blessed you will be when you go out. God cause your enemies who will rise up against you to be defeated before you. By one way they will come out against you, but by 7 ways they will flee before you. God will decree (mandate) for you blessing on your store supply every pledge of yours, and he will certainly bless you in the land your God is giving you. God will establish you as holy people to himself, just as he swore to you, because you continue to keep the commandments of your God and you have walked in his ways. All the peoples on the earth have to see that God's name has been called upon you, and indeed be afraid of you. God will also make you overflow indeed with prosperity (success, wealth) in the fruit of your belly, and domestic animals and fruitage of your ground, on the ground that your God has swore to your ancestors. God will open up to you his good storehouse, the heavens, to give rain on the land in its season and to bless every deed of your hand, and you will certainly lend to many nations while yourself will not borrow. God will indeed put you at the head not on the tail--and you must come to be only on top and you will not come to be on the bottom because you keep obeying the commandments of your God which I am ordering you today to observe and to do. You must not turn away from all the words that I am commanding you today, to the right or to the left, to walk after other gods to serve them. It must occur if you will not listen to the voice your God by taking care to do all his commandments and statutes that I am
commanding you today, all these malediction (curse) must also come upon you and overtake you. Cursed you will be in the city and in the field. Cursed will be your basket and your kneading trough. Cursed will be the fruit of your belly, and the fruitage of your ground, the young of your cattle and the offspring of your flock. Cursed you will be when you come in and cursed you will be when you go out. God will send upon you the curse, confusion, and rebuke (reproach) in every pledge of yours that you try to carry out, until you have been destroyed and have perished in a hurry because of the badness of your practices in that you have forsaken (abandoned) me. God will cause a sickness to cling to you until he has exterminated you from off the ground to which you are to take ownership of it. God will strike you with tuberculosis, burning fever and inflammation, feverish heat and the sword, scorching, mildew, and they will certainly pursue you until you have perished. Your skies that are over your head must also become copper, and the earth that is beneath you iron. God will give you powder and dust as rain of your land. From the heavens it will come down upon you until you have been destroyed. God will cause you to be defeated before your enemies. By one way you will go out against them, by 7 ways you will flee before them. And you must become scary object to all the earth's kingdoms. Your dead body must become food for every flying creature of the heavens and to the beast of the field, with no one to make them tremble. God will strike you with boil of Egypt and piles and eczema (rash, itchy inflammation of the skin) and skin eruption, from which you will be not able to be healed. God will strike you with madness and loss of sight, bewilderment of heart, and you will indeed become the one who gropes about in midday, just as a blind man gropes in gloom (darkness), and you will not make your ways successful, and you must become the only one always who is defrauded and robbed, with no one to save you. You will become engaged to a woman but another man will rape her. You will build a house but you will not live in it. You will plant a vineyard but you will not begin to use it. Your bull slaughtered before your eyes--but you will not eat any of it. Your ass will be taken in robbery before your face--but it will not return to you. Your sheep given to your enemies--but you will have no savior. Your sons and daughters given to another people and your eyes looking on and yearning for them always--but your hands will be without power. The fruitage of your ground and all your production a people will eat whom you have not known and you must become one who is only defrauded and crushed always. You will certainly become maddened at the sight of your eyes that you will see. God will strike you with a infectious boil upon both your knees and legs, from which you will not be able to be healed, from sole of your foot to the crown of your head. God will march you and your
king whom you will set up over you to a nation whom you have not known, neither you nor your ancestors, and there you will have to serve other gods, of wood and stone. You must become an object of astonishment, a proverbial saying and a taunt (insult) among all the peoples to whom God will lead you away. A lot of seed you will take out to the field, but little will you gather, because the locust will devour it. Vineyards you will plant and certainly cultivate, but you will drink no wine and gather nothing in, because the worm will eat it up. You will come to have olive trees in all your territory, but you will rub yourself with no oil because your olives will drop off. Sons and daughters you will bring forth but they will not continue yours, because they will go off into captivity. All your trees and fruitage of your ground whirring insects will take in possession. The alien resident who is in your midst, will ascend (rise up) higher and higher above you, while you -- you keep descend (go down) lower and lower. He will be the one to lend to you, while you--you will not lend to him. He will become the head, while you--you become the tail. All these curse will certainly come upon you, and pursue you and overtake you until you have been destroyed, because you did not listen to your God by keeping his commandments and statutes that he commanded you. They must continue on you and your offspring as a sign and omen to time indefinite, due to the fact that you did not serve God with rejoicing and joy for the heart for the abundance of everything. You will have to serve your enemies whom your God will send against you with hunger and thirst and nakedness and want of everything, and he will certainly put an iron yoke on your neck until he has destroyed you. God will raise up against you far away, at from the end of the earth, just as an eagle pounces, a nation whose language you will not understand, a nation fierce in appearance who will not be partial to an old man or show favor for a young man. They will certainly eat the fruit of your domestic animals and the fruitage of your ground until you have been destroyed, and they will let no grain, new wine or oil, no young of your cattle or offspring of your flock, remain for you until they have destroyed you. They will indeed besiege you within all your gates until high and fortified walls in which you are trusting fall in all your land, yes, they will certainly besiege you within all your gates in all your land, which your God has given you. Then you will have to eat the fruit of the belly, the flesh of your sons and your daughters, whom your God has given you, because the tightness and stress with which your enemies will hem you in. As for the very delicate and dainty man among you, his eyes will be evil inclined toward his brother and his cherished wife and remainder of his sons he has remaining, so as not give one of them any of the flesh of his sons that he will eat, because he has nothing at all remaining to him because of tightness and stress with which your enemies will hem you in within all your gates. As for the delicate and dainty woman among
you who never attempted to set the sole of the foot upon the earth of being a dainty habitat and for delicateness, her eyes will be evil inclined toward her cherished husband and her son and her daughter, even toward her afterbirth that comes out from between her legs and toward her sons whom she proceeded to bear, because she will eat them in secrecy for the want of everything because of the tightness and stress with which your enemy will hem you in within your gates. If you will not take care to carry out all the words of this law that are written in this book so as to fear this glorious and fear inspiring name, even your Jehovah your God. God will also make your plagues and the plagues of your offspring especially severe, great and long lasting plagues, and infectious and long lasting sicknesses. He will indeed bring back upon you all the diseases of Egypt before which you got scared, and they will certainly hang onto you. Also, any sickness and any plague that is not written in the book of this law, God will bring them upon you until you have been destroyed. You will be left with few in number, although you have become like the stars of the heavens for multitude, because you did not listen to the voice of your God. It must occur that just as God rejoiced over you to do good and to multiply you, so God will rejoice over you to destroy you and you will simply be torn away from off the soil to which you are going to take possession of it. God will certainly scatter you among all the people from the one end of the earth to the other end of the earth, and there you will have to serve other gods whom you have not known, neither you nor your ancestors, wood and stone. Among those nations you will have no case, nor there prove to be any resting place for the sole of your foot, and there God indeed will give you a trembling heart and failing of the eyes and despair of soul. You certainly will be in the greatest danger for your life and be in dread night and day, and you will not be sure of your life. In the morning you will say--'If it only were evening!' and in the evening you will say--'If it only were morning!' because of the dread of your heart with which you will be in dread and because of the sight your eyes that you will see. God will certainly will bring you back to Egypt by ships by the way about which I have said to you--'You will never see it again.' and you will have to sell yourselves there to your enemies as slave men and maidservants but there will be no buyer." 29 These are the words of the covenant that God commanded Moses to conclude with the sons of Israel in the land of Moab aside form the covenant that he had concluded with them in Horeb. Moses proceeded to call all Israel and to say to them--"You were the ones seeing all that God did before your eyes in the land of Egypt to Pharaoh and all his servants and all his land, the great provings that your eyes saw, those great signs and miracles. And yet God has not given you a heart to know and eyes to see and ears to hear down to this day. 'While I kept guiding you 40 years in the wilderness, your garments did not
wear out upon you, and your sandal did not wear out upon your foot. Bread you did not eat, and wine and intoxicating liquor you did not drink in order that you might know that I am your God. Eventually you came to this place, and Sihon the king of Heshbon and Og the king of Bashan proceeded to come out to meet us in battle, but we defeated them. After that we took their land and gave it as an inheritance to the Reubenites and the Gadites and half the tribe of the Manassites. So you must keep the words of this covenant and do them, in order that you may make everything you will do turn out well. You are all of you stationed today before your God, the heads of your tribes, your older men and your officers, every man of Israel, your little ones, your wives, and your alien resident who is in the midst of your camp, from the gatherer of your wood to the drawer of your water. In order for you to enter into the covenant of your God and his oath, which your God is concluding with you today, for the purpose of establishing you today as his people and that he may prove himself your God, just as he has promised you and just as he has sworn to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Now it is not with you alone that I am concluding this covenant and this oath, but it is with him who is here standing with us today before our God and with those who are not here with us today--for yourselves well know how we lived in the land of Egypt and how we passed through the midst of the nations through whom you passed. You used to see their disgusting things and their dungy idols, wood and stone, silver and gold, that were with them--that there may not be among you a man or a woman or a family or a tribe whose heart is turning today away from our God to go and serve the gods of those nations that there may not be among you a root bearing the fruit of a poisonous plant and wormwood. It must occur that when someone has heard the words of this oath, and he has blessed himself in his heart, saying--'I shall come to have peace, although I will walk in the stubbornness of my heart, with the intention of sweeping away the well watered one along with the thirsty one. God will not want to forgive him, but then God's anger and his ardor (zeal, passion) will smoke against that man, and all the oath written in this book will certainly settle down on him and God will indeed wipe out his name from under the heavens. So God will have to separate him for calamity from all the tribes of Israel in accord that is written in this book of the law. The future generation, your sons who will rise up after you, will be bound to say, also the foreigner who will come from a distant land, even when they have seen the plagues of that land and its maladies with which God has sickened it, sulphur and salt and burning, so that its whole land will not be sown, nor sprout, nor will any vegetation spring up in it, like the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah, Admah and Zebolim which God overthrew in his anger and in his
wrath (rage), yes all the nations will be bound to you say--'Why did God do like this to this land? Why the heat of this great anger?' Then they will have to say--'It was because they abandoned the covenant (relationship) of God the God their ancestors, which he concluded (ended) with them when he brought them out of Egypt. They proceeded to go and serve other gods and to bow down to them, gods that they had not known and he had not supported them. Then God's anger burned against that land by bringing upon it the whole curse (malediction) written in this book. Hence God uprooted them from off their soil in anger and rage and great indignation (distress). and threw them into another land as at this day.' The things concealed belong to our God, but that things revealed belong to us and to our sons to time indefinite, that we may carry out all the works of this law. 30 It must occur that when all these words will come upon you, the blessing and the malediction (curse), which I have put before you, and you have brought them back to your heart among all the nations where your God has scattered you, and you have returned to your God and listened to his voice according to all that I am commanding you today, you and your sons, with all your heart and all your soul. Your God must also bring back your captives and show you mercy and collect you again from all the peoples where your God has scattered you. If your scattered people should be at the end of the heavens, from there your God will collect you and from there he will take you. Your God will indeed bring you into the land of which your fathers took possession, and you will certainly take ownership of it, and he will indeed do you good and multiply you more than your fathers. Your God will have to circumcise your heart and the heart of your offspring that you may love your God with all your heart and all your soul for the sake of your life. Your God will certainly put all these oaths upon your enemies and those who hate you, who have persecuted (oppress, abuse because of religion) you. As for you, you will turn and certainly listen to the voice of your God and do all his commandments that I am ordering you today. Your God indeed make you have more than enough in every work of your land, in the fruit of your belly, and the fruit of your domestic animals and the fruitage of your soil, resulting in prosperity, because God will again rejoice over you for good, just as he rejoiced over your ancestors, for you will listen to the voice of your God so as to keep his commandments and his statutes written in this book of the law, because you will return to your God with all your heart and all your soul. For this commandment that I am commanding you, today is not too difficult for you, nor is it far away. It is not in the heavens, so as to result in saying--'Who will ascend (rise) for us into the heavens and get it for us that he may let us hear it that we may do it? Neither is it on the other side of the sea, so as to result in saying, 'Who will passover for us to the other side of the
sea and get it for us, that he may let us hear it that we may do it? For the word is very near you, in your own mouth and in your own heart, that you may do it. See, I do put before you today life and good, and death and bad. If you will listen to the commandments of your God, which I am ordering you today, so as to love your God Jehovah, to walk in his ways and to keep his commandments, statutes, judicial decisions, then you will be bound to keep alive and multiply, and your God will bless you in the land to which you are going to take ownership of it. But if your heart turns away and you do not listen, and you are actually seduced and bow down to other gods and serve them, I do tell you today you will positively perish. You will not lengthen your days on the ground which you are crossing the Jordan to take ownership of it. I do take the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you today, that I have put life and death before you, the blessing and the curse, that you may choose life in order to keep alive, you and your offspring, by loving your God, by listening to his voice and sticking to him, for he is your life and length of your days, that you may live upon the ground that God swore to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac and Jacob to give to them. 31 Then Moses went and spoke these words to all Israel and said to them--"120 years old I am today. I shall no more be allowed to go out and come in as God has said to me--'You will not cross the Jordan.' Your God is the one crossing before you. He himself will stimulate these nations from before you, and you must drive them away. God is the one crossing before you, just as God has spoken. God will certainly do to them just as he has done to Sihon, Og, the kings of Amorites, and to their land, when he destroyed them. God has abandoned them to you, and you must do to them according all commandment that I have commanded you. Be courageous and strong. Do not be afraid or suffer a shock before them, because your God is the one marching with you. He will neither desert you or leave you entirely." Moses proceeded to call Joshua and say to him before the eyes of all Israel--"Be courageous and strong--because you-- you will bring this people into the land that God swore to their ancestors to give to them, and you yourself will give to them as an inheritance. God is the one marching before you. He himself will continue with you. He will neither desert you nor leave you entirely. Do not be afraid or be terrified. Then Moses wrote this law and gave it to the priests the sons of Levi, the carriers of the ark of God's covenant, and to all the older men of Israel. Moses went on to command them, said--"At the end of every 7 years, in the appointed time of the year of the release, in the festivals of booths, when all Israel comes to see the face of your God in the place that he will choose, you will read this law in front of
all Israel in their bearing. Congregate the people, the men and the women and the little ones and your alien resident who is within your gates, in order that they may listen and in order that they may learn, as they must fear your God and take care to carry out all the words of this law. And their sons who have not known should listen, and they must learn to fear your God all the days that you are living upon the soil to which you are crossing the Jordan to take ownership of it." After that God said to Moses--"Look! the days have drawn near for you to die. Call Joshua and station yourselves in the tent of meeting, that I may commission him." So Moses and Joshua went and stationed themselves in the tent of meeting. Then God appeared at the tent in the pillar of cloud, and the pillar of cloud began to stand by the entrance of the tent. God now said to Moses--"Look! You are lying down with your forefathers (ancestors), and this people will certainly get up and have immoral se* with foreign gods of the land to which they are going, in their very midst, and they will certainly forsake (abandon) me and break my covenant that I have concluded with them. At that my anger will indeed burn against them in that day, and I will certainly forsake them and conceal my face from them, and they must become something to be consumed, and many calamities and distresses must come upon them, and they will bound to say in that day--'Is it not because our God is not in our midst that these calamities have come upon us?' As for me, I will absolutely conceal my face in that day because of all the badness that they have done, because they have turned to other gods. Now write for yourselves this song and teach it to the sons of Israel. Place it in their mouths in order that this song may serve as my witness against the sons of Israel. For I shall bring them to the ground that I have sworn about to their ancestors, which flows with milk and honey, and they will certainly eat and be satisfied and grow fat, and turn to other gods, and they will indeed serve them, and treat me with disrespect and break my covenant. It must occur that when many calamities and distresses will come upon them, this song must also answer before them as a witness, because it should not be forgotten out of the mouth of their offspring, for I well know their inclination that they are developing today before I bring them into the land about which I have sworn. So Moses wrote this song in that day, that he might teach it to the sons of Israel. He proceeded to commission Joshua the son of Nun and to say--'Be courageous and strong, because you--you will bring the sons of Israel into the land about which I have sworn to them, and I myself will continue with you. It came about just as soon as Moses had finished writing the words of this law in a book until their completion. Moses began to command the Levites, the carriers of the ark of God's covenant, said--"Taking this book of the law, you must place it at the side of the ark of the covenant of your God, and it must serve as a witness there against you. For I --I well know your
rebelliousness and your stiff neck. If while I am yet alive with you today, you have proved rebellious in behavior toward God, then how much more so after my death! Congregate to me all the older men of your tribes and your officers, and let me speak to their hearing these words, and let me take the heavens and the earth as witnesses against them. For I well know that after my death you will without fail act ruinously, and you will certainly turn away from the way about which I have commanded you, and calamity will be bound to befall you at the end of the days, because you will do what is bad in the eyes of God so as to offend him by the works of your hands." Moses proceeded to speak in the hearing of all congregation of Israel the words of this song until their completion"-- 32 Give ear, O heavens, and let me speak. And let the earth hear the sayings of my mouth. My instruction will drip as the rain, My saying will trickle as the dew, As gentle rains upon grass And as copious showers upon vegetation. For I shall declare the name of Jehovah. Do you attribute greatness to our God! The Rock, perfect is his activity, For all his ways are justice, God of faithfulness, with whom there is no injustice, Righteous and upright is he. They have acted ruinously on their own part, They are not his children, the defect is their own. A generation crooked and twisted! Is to Jehovah that you keep doing this way, O people stupid and not wise? Is he not your father who has produced you, He who made you and proceeded to give you stability? Remember the days of old, Consider the years back from generation to generation, Ask your father, and he can tell you, Your old men, and they can say it to you. When the most high give the nations an inheritance, when he parted sons of Adams from one another, He proceeded to fix the boundary of the peoples With regard for the number of the sons of Israel. For God's share is his people, Jacob is the allotment that he inherits. He came to find him in a wilderness land, And in an empty, howling desert. He began to encircle him, to take care of him, To safeguard him as the pupil of his eye. Just as an eagle stirs up its nest, Hovers over its fledglings, Spreads out its wings, takes them, Carries them on its pinions,
Jehovah alone kept leading him, And there was no foreign god along with him. He kept making him ride upon earth's high places, so that he ate the produce of the land. And he kept making him suck honey out of a crag, And oil out of a flinty rock, Butter of the herd and milk of the flock Together with the fat of rams, And male sheep, the breed of Bashan, and he-goats Together with the kidney fat of wheat, And the blood of the grape you kept drinking as wine. When Jeshurun began to grow fat, then he kicked. You have grown fat, you have become thick, you have become gorged. So he forsook God, who made him, And despised the Rock of his salvation. They began inciting him to jealousy with strange gods, with detestable things they kept offending him. They went sacrificing to demons, not to God, Gods whom they had not known, New ones who recently came in, With whom your forefathers were not acquainted. The Rock who fathered you, you proceeded to forget, And you began to leave God out of memory, the One bringing you forth with childbirth pains. When Jehovah saw it, then he came to disrespect them, Because of the vexation his sons and his daughters gave. So he said, 'Let me conceal my face from them, Let me see what their end will be afterward. For they are a generation of perverseness, Sons in whom there is no faithfulness, They, for their part, have incited me to jealousy with what is no god, They have vexed me with their vain idols, And I, for my part, shall incite them to jealousy with what is no people. With a stupid nation I shall offend them. For a fire has been ignited in my anger And it will burn down to Sheol, the lowest place, And it will consume the earth and its produce And will set ablaze the foundations of mountains. I shall increase calamities upon them, My arrows I shall spend upon them. Exhausted from hunger they will be and eaten up by burning fever And bitter destruction. And the teeth of beasts I shall send upon them, With the venom of reptiles of the dust. Outdoors a sword will bereave them, And indoors fright, Of both young man and virgin,
Suckling together with gray haired man. I should have said, "I shall disperse them, I will make the mention of them cease from mortal men," Were it not that I was afraid of vexation from the enemy, That their adversaries might misconstrue it, That they might say, "Our hand has proved superior, And it was not Jehovah who worked all this out," For they are a nation on whom counsel perishes, And among them there is no understanding. O they were wise! Then they would ponder over this. They would consider their end afterward. How could one pursue a 1000, And 2 put 10,000 to flight? Not unless the Rock had sold them And Jehovah had surrendered them. For their rock is not like our Rock, Even our enemies being the ones to decide, For their vines are vines from Sodom And from the terraces of Gomorrah, Their grapes are grapes of poison, Their clusters are bitter, Their wines are venom of big snakes And cruel poison of cobras. Is it not laid up with me, With a seal affixed to it in my storehouse? Vengeance is mine and retribution At the appointed time their foot will move unsteadily, For the day of their disaster is near, And the events in readiness for them to make haste, for Jehovah will judge his people And he will feel regret over his servants, Because he will see that support has disappeared And there is only a helpless and worthless one. And he will certainly say, Where are their gods, The rock in whom they sought refuge, Who used to eat the fat of their sacrifices, To drink the wine of their drink offerings? Let them get up and help you, Let them become a concealed place for you. See now that I--I am he And there are no gods together with me. I put to death and I make alive. I have severely wounded, and I -- I will heal, And there is no one snatching out of my hand. For I raise my hand to heaven in an oath, And I do say, "As I am alive to time indefinite," If I indeed sharpen my glittering sword, And my hand takes hold on judgment, I will pay back vengeance to my adversaries
And render retribution to those who intensely hate me. I shall intoxicate my arrows with blood, While my sword will eat flesh With the blood of the slain and the captives, With the heads of the leaders of the enemy.' Be glad, you nations, with his people, For he will avenge the blood of his servants, And he will pay back vengeance to his adversaries And will indeed make atonement for ground of his people. Thus Moses spoke all the words of this song in the hearing of the people, he and Hoshea the son of Nun. After Moses finished speaking all these words to all Israel, he went on to say to them--"Apply your hearts to all the words that I am speaking in warning to you today, that you may command your sons to take care to do all the words of this law. For it is no valueless word for you, but it means your life, and by these words you may lengthen your days upon the soil to which you are crossing the Jordan to take ownership of it." God proceeded to speak to Moses on this same day, said--"Go up into this mountain of Abarim, Mount Nebo, which is in the land of Moab, which fronts toward Jericho, and see the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the sons of Israel as a possession. Then die on the mountain into which you are going up, and be gathered to your people, just as Aaron your brother died on mount Hor and got to be gathered to his people, for the reason that you men acted un-dutifully toward me in the middle of sons of Israel at the waters of Meribah of Kadesh in the wilderness of Zin, for the reason that you men did not sanctify me in the middle of sons of Israel. For from a distance you will see the land, but you will not go there into the land that I am giving to sons of Israel. 33 Now this is the blessing with which Moses the man of true God blessed the sons of Israel before his death. He proceeded to say--"God came from Sinai and he flashed forth from Seir upon them. He beamed forth from mountainous region of Paran, and with him were holy myriads, at his right hand warriors belong to them. He was also cherishing his people. All their holy ones are in your hand. And they reclined at your feet. They began to receive some of your words, Moses laid as a command upon us a law, a possession of the congregation of Jacob. And he became a king of Jeshurun when the heads of the people gathered themselves, the entire number of tribes of Israel. Let Reuben live and not die off and let his men not become few. This was Judah's blessing, as he went on to say--
"Hear O God, the voice of Judah, And you bring him to his people, His arms have contented for what is his, may you prove yourself a helper from his adversaries." As to Levi he said--"Your Thummim and your Urim belong to the man loyal to you, Whom you put to the test at Massah. You began to contend with him by the waters of Meriah, The man who said to his father and his mother, 'I have not seen him.' Even his brothers he did not acknowledge. His sons he did not know. For they kept your saying, And your covenant they continued to observe. Let them instruct Jacob in judicial decisions And Israel in your law. Let them render up incense before your nostrils And a whole offering on your altar. O bless Jehovah, his vital energy, And may you show pleasures in activities of his hands. Wound severely in their hips those who rise up against him, And those who intensely hate him, and they may not rise up." As to Benjamin he said, "Let the beloved one of God reside in security by him, While he shelters him the whole day, And he must reside between his shoulders." And as to God he said, "May his land be continually blessed from Jehovah With choice things from heaven, with dew, And with watery deep down below. And with the choice things, products of the sun, And with the choice things, the yield of lunar months, And with the choicest things from mountains of the east, And with the choice things of indefinitely lasting hills, And with the choice things of the earth and its fullness, And with the approval of the One residing in the thornbush. May they come upon the head of Joseph And upon the crown of the head of the one singled out from his brothers. As the 1stborn of his bull his splendor is, And his horns are the horns of the wild bull. With them he will push peoples All together to the ends of the earth, And they are the tens of thousands of Ephraim, And they are the thousands of Manasseh. As to Zebulun he said, "Rejoice O Zebulun, in your going out, And Issachar, in your tents, Peoples to the mountain they will call. There they will sacrifice the sacrifices of righteousness. For they will suck the abounding wealth of the seas
And hidden hoards of the sand." As to Gad he said, "Blessed is the one who is widening the borders of Gad. As a lion he must reside, And he must tear the arm, yes, the crown of the head. And he will pick out the first part for himself, For there allotment of a statute giver is reserved. And the heads of the people gather themselves together. The righteousness of Jehovah will he certainly execute And his judicial decisions with Israel. As to Dan he said, "Dan is a lion cub. He will keep out of Bashan." As to Naphtali he said, "Naphtali is satisfied with the approval And full of the blessing of Jehovah. Do take the possession of the west and south." As to Asher he said, "Blessed with sons is Asher. Let him become one approved by his brothers, and one dipping his foot in oil. Iron and copper are your gate locks, And in proportion to your days is your leisurely walk. There is none like the true God of Jeshurun, Who rises upon heaven in help of you And upon cloudy skies in his eminence. A hiding place is the God of ancient time, And underneath are the indefinitely lasting arms. And he will drive away from before you the enemy, and he will say, 'Annihilate them!' And Israel will reside in security, The mountain of Jacob by itself, Upon a land of grain and new wine. Yes, his heavens will let the dew drip down. Happy you are, O Israel! Who is there like you, A people enjoying salvation in Jehovah, The shield of your help, And the One is the eminent sword? So your enemies will cringe before you, And you--upon their high places you will tread." 34 Then Moses proceeded to go up from the desert plains of Moab into Mount Nebo to the top of Pisgah, which fronts toward Jericho. Jehovah went showing him all the land, Gilead as far as Dan, and all Naphtali and the land of Ephraim and Manasseh and all the land of Judah as far as the western sea, and the Negeb and the District, the valley plain of Jericho, the city of the palm trees as far as Zoar. God went on to say to him, "This is the land about which I have sworn to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, said--'To your seed I shall give it.' I have caused you to see it with your own eyes, as you will not cross over there." After that Moses the servant of God died there in
the land of Moab at the order of God. He proceeded to bury him in the valley in the land of Moab in front of Bethpeor, and nobody has come to know his grave down to this day. Moses was 120 years old at this death. His eyes had not grown dim, and his vital strength had not fled. The sons of Israel proceeded to weep for Moses on the desert plains of Moab 30 days. At length the days of weeping of the mourning period for Moses were completed. Joshua the son of Nun was full of the spirit of wisdom, for Moses had laid his hand upon him, and the sons of Israel began to listen to him and they went doing just as God had commanded Moses. But there has never yet risen up a prophet in Israel like Moses, whom God knew face to face, as respects all the signs and the miracles that God sent him to do in the land of Egypt to Pharaoh and all his servants and his land, and as regards all the strong hand and all the great awesomeness that Moses exercised before the eyes of all Israel.
Joshua
1 And it was about after the death of Moses the servant of God that God
proceeded to say to Joshua the son of Nun, the minister of Moses --"Moses my servant is dead, and now get up, cross the Jordan, you and all this people, into the land that I am giving to them, to the sons of Israel. Every place upon which the sole of your foot will tread, to you people I will certainly give it, just as I promised to Moses. From the wilderness and this Lebanon to the great river, the river Euphrates, that is, all the land of the Hittites, and to the Great Sea toward the setting of the sun your territory will prove to be. Nobody will take a firm stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I proved to be with Moses I will prove to be with you. I shall neither desert you nor leave you entirely. Be courageous and strong, for you are the one who will cause this people to inherit the land that I swore to their ancestors to give to them. Only be courageous and very strong to take care to do according to all the law that Moses my servant commanded you. Do not turn away from it to the right or to the left, in order that you may act wisely everywhere you go. This book of the law should not depart from your mouth, and you must in an undertone read in it day and night, in order that you may take care to do according to all that is written in it, for then you will make your way successful and then you will act wisely. Have not commanded you? Be courageous and strong. do not suffer shock or be terrified, for your God is with you wherever you go." Joshua proceeded to command the officers of
Black Ink--Bible Page/Text
Blue Ink -- Understand & Pray
Joshua 1 to 24
the people, said--"Pass through the midst of the camp and command the people, say--'Get provisions (supply) ready for yourselves, because 3 days from now you are crossing this Jordan to go in and take ownership of the land that God is giving you to take possession of it. To the Reubenites and the Gadites and the half tribe of Manasseh, Joshua said, "Let there be a remembering of the word that Jehovah commanded you, say--'Your God is giving you rest and has given you this land. Your wives, your little ones and your livestock will live in the land that Moses has given you on this side of the Jordan, but you men will pass over in battle formation before your brothers, all the courageous mighty men, and you must help them. 1st when God gives rest to your brothers the same as to you, and they also have taken possession of the land that your God is giving them, you must also return to the land of your holding and take possession of it, the one that Moses the servant of God has given you on the side of the Jordan toward the rising of the sun. Accordingly they answered Joshua, said--"All that you have commanded us we shall do, and wherever you may send us we shall
go. As we listened to Moses in everything, so we shall listen to you. Only may your God prove to be with you just as he proved to be with Moses. Any man that behaves rebelliously against your order and does not listen to your words in all that you may command him will be put to death. Only be courageous and strong. 2 Then Joshua the son of Nun sent 2 men out secretly from Shitttim as spies, said--"Go, take a look at the land and Jericho" So they went and came to the house of a prostitute woman whose name was Rahab and they took up lodging there. In time it was said to the king of Jericho--"Look! Men from the sons of Israel have come in here tonight to search out the land." At that the king of Jericho sent to Rahab, said--"Bring out the men that came to you, that have come into your house, for it is to search out all the land that they have come." Meanwhile the woman took the 2 men and hid them. And she proceeded to say--"Yes, the men did come to me, and I did not know from where they were. At about at the closing of the gate by dark that the men went out. I just do not know where the men have gone. Chase after them quickly for you will overtake them." (But she, though, had taken them up to the roof, and she kept them out of sight among stalks of flax laid in rows for her upon the roof.) And the men chased after them in the direction of the Jordan at the fords, and they shut the gate immediately after those chasing after them had gone out. As for these, before they could lie down, she herself came up to them on the roof. She went on to say to the men--"I do know that God will certainly give you the land, and that the fright of you has fallen upon us, and that all the people of the land have become disheartened because of you. For we have heard how God dried up the waters of the Red Sea from before you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to the 2 kings of
the Amorites who were on the other side of the Jordan, namely Sihon and Og, whom you devoted to destruction. When we got to hear it, then our hearts began to melt, and no spirit has arisen yet in anybody because of you, for your God is in the heavens above and on the earth beneath. Now, please swear to me by God that because I have showed loving kindness toward you, you also will certainly show loving kindness toward the household of my father, and you must give me a trustworthy sign--you must keep alive my father, mother, brothers and sisters and all who belong to them, and you must deliver our souls from death." At that the men said to her--"Our souls are to die instead of you people! If you will not tell about this matter of ours, it must also occur that when God gives us the land, we also shall certainly exercise loving kindness and trustworthiness to you." After that she had them go down by a rope through the window, for her house was on a side of the wall, and it was on the wall that she was living. She proceeded to say to them--"Go to the mountainous region, that those in pursuit may not come in contact with you, and you must keep hiding there 3 days, until those in pursuit have come back, and afterward you may go in your own direction." In turn the men said to her--"We are free from guilt respecting this oath of yours that you have made us swear. Look! We are coming into the land. This cord of scarlet thread you should tie in the window by which you have had us go down, and your father, mother. brothers and all the household of your father you should gather to yourself into the house. It must occur that anyone who goes out of the doors of your house into the open, his blood will be upon his own head, and we shall be free from guilt, and everyone who continues with you in the house, his blood will be in our heads if a hand should come upon against him. If you should report this matter of ours, we shall also become free from guilt respecting this oath of yours that you have made us swear." To this she said--"According to your words so let it be." With that she sent them off and they went on their way. After that she tied the scarlet cord in the window. So they came to the mountainous region and kept living there for 3 days, until pursuers came back. Now the pursuers were looking for them on every road but they didn't find them. And the 2 men proceeded to come down from the mountainous area and to cross over and come to Joshua the son of Nun, and they began to relate to him all the things that have happened to them. They went on to say to Joshua--"God has given all the land into our hands. Consequently all the inhabitants of the land have also grown disheartened because of us." 3 Then Joshua got up early in the morning, and he and all the sons of Israel proceeded to pull away from Shittim and to go as far as Jordan, and they went spending the night there before they would cross. So it was about at the end of the 3 days that the officers proceeded to pass through the midst of the camp and to command the people,
saying--"As soon as you see the ark of the covenant of Jehovah your God, and the priests, the Levites, carrying it, then you yourselves will leave away from your place, and you must follow it -- only let there prove to be a distance between you and it, about 2,000 cubits (approx. 3000 feet) by measure, do not get near to it--in order that you may know the way by which you should go, for you have not passed over on that way before." Joshua now said to the people--"Sanctify (purify) yourselves for tomorrow Jehovah will do wonderful things in your midst." Then Joshua said to the priest--"Take up the ark of the covenant and pass before the people." So they took up the ark of the covenant and went before the people. God proceeded to say to Joshua-- "This day I shall start to make you great in the eyes of all Israel, that they may know that just as I proved to be with Moses I shall prove to be with you. And you--you should command the priests carrying the ark of the covenant, say--"As soon as you have come as far as the edge of the waters of the Jordan, you should stand still to the Jordan.'" Joshua went on to say to the sons of Israel--"Approach here and listen to the words of your God." After that Joshua said "By this you will know that a living God is in your midst, and that he will without fail drive away from before you the Canaanites and the Hittites and the Hivites and the Perizzites and the Girgashites and the Amorites and the Jebusites. Look! The ark of the covenant of the Lord of the whole earth is passing before you into the Jordan. Now take for yourselves 12 men from the tribes of Israel, one man for each tribe. It must occur that at the instant that the soles of the feet of the priests carrying the ark of Jehovah, the Lord of the whole earth, rest in the waters of the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan will be cut off, the waters descending from above, and they will stand still as dam." It was about that when the people left away from their tents just before passing over the Jordan, with the priests carrying the ark of the covenant before the people, and at the instant that the carriers of the Ark came as far as the Jordan and the feet of the priests carrying the Ark were dipped in the edge of the waters (now the Jordan overflows all its banks all the days of harvest), then the waters descending from above began to stand still. They rose up as one dam, very far away from Adam, the city at the side of Zarethan, while those descending toward the sea of the Arabah, the Salt Sea, were exhausted. They were cut off, and the people passed over in front of Jericho. Meanwhile the priests carrying the ark of God's covenant kept standing immovable on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan as all Israel were passing over on dry ground, until the whole nation had completed passing over the Jordan. 4 It was about as soon as the whole nation had completed passing over the Jordan, God proceeded to to say to Joshua--"Take for yourselves 12 men from the people, one man from each tribe and command them, say--"Take up for yourselves from the very midst of the Jordan, from the place where the priests feet stood motionless,
12 stones, and you must carry them over with you and deposit them in the lodging place in which you will lodge tonight.'" So Joshua called 12 men whom he had appointed from the sons of Israel, one man from each tribe. Joshua went on to say to them--"Pass ahead of the ark of God your Jehovah to the middle of the Jordan, and lift up for yourselves each one a stone upon his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Israel, in order that this may serve as a sign in your midst. In case your sons should ask in time, saying--"Why do you have these stones?" You must also say to them--'Because the waters of the Jordan were cut off from before the ark of Jehovah's covenant. When it passed through the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off, and these stones must serve as a memorial to the sons of Israel to time indefinite.'" Accordingly the sons of Israel did so, just as Joshua had commanded, and they took up 12 stones from the middle of the Jordan, just as God had stated to Joshua, to correspond with the number of tribes of the sons of Israel--they went taking them over with them to the lodging place and depositing them there. There were also 12 stones that Joshua set up in the middle of the Jordan on the standing place of the feet of the priests carrying the ark of the covenant, and they continue there until this day. The priests carrying the Ark were standing in the middle of the Jordan until the whole matter had been completed that God had ordered Joshua to speak to the people, according to all that Moses had commanded Joshua. All the while people hurried up and passed over. It was about as soon as all the people had completed passing over, then the ark of God passed over, and the priests, before the people. The sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh proceeded to pass over in battle formation in the sight of sons of Israel, just as Moses had stated to them. About 40,000 equipped for the army passed over before God for the war onto the desert plains of Jericho. On that day God made Joshua great in the eyes of all Israel, and they began to fear him just as they had feared Moses all days of his life. Then God said to Joshua--"Command the priests carrying the ark of the testimony that they go up out of the Jordan." So Joshua commanded the priests, said--"Go up out of the Jordan." It was about that when the priests carrying the ark of the covenant of God came up out of the middle of the Jordan and the soles of the feet of the priests were drawn out onto the dry ground, then the waters of the Jordan began returning to their place and went overflowing all its banks as formerly. The people came up out of the Jordan on the 10th of the 1st month and took up camping at Gilgal on the eastern border of Jericho. As for the 12 stones that they had taken out of the Jordan, Joshua set these up at Gilgal. He went on to say to the sons of Israel--"When your sons ask their fathers in time, asking--"What do these stones mean?" You must then let your sons know,
saying-'On the dry land it was that Israel passed over this Jordan, when your God dried up the waters of the Jordan from before them until they had passed over, just as your God had done to the Red Sea when he dried it up from before us until we had passed over--in order that all the peoples of the earth may know God's hand, that it is strong, in order that you may indeed fear your God always.'" It was about that as soon as all the kings of the Amorites, who were on the side of the Jordan to the west, and all the kings of the Canaanites, who were by the sea, heard that God had dried up the waters of the Jordan from before the sons of Israel until they had passed over, then their hearts began to melt and there proved to be no spiritedness in them anymore because of the sons of Israel. At that particular time God said to Joshua--"Make for yourself flint knives and circumcise the sons of Israel again, the 2nd time." Accordingly Joshua made flint knives for himself and circumcised the sons of Israel at Gibeathhaaraloth. This was the reason why Joshua did the circumcising, all the people that came out of Egypt, the males, all the men of war, had died in the wilderness on the road when they were coming out of Egypt. For all the people who came out proved to be circumcised, but all the people born in the wilderness on the road when they were coming out of Egypt they had not circumcised. For the sons of Israel had walked 40 years in the wilderness, until all the nation of the men of war who came out of Egypt that did not listen to the voice of God had come to its finish, to whom God swore that he would never let them see the land that God had sworn to their ancestors to give to us, a land flowing with milk and honey. Their sons he raised up instead of them. These Joshua circumcised, because they proved to be uncircumcised, for they had not circumcised them on the road. It was about that when they had completed circumcising all the nation, they kept sitting in their place in the camp until they revived. Then God said to Joshua--"Today I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from off you." So the name of that place came to be called Gilgal until this day. The sons of Israel continued to camp in Gilgal, and they proceeded to carry out the passover on the 14th day of the month, in the evening on the desert plains of Jericho. They began to eat some of the yield of the land the day after the passover, unfermented cakes and roasted grains, on this same day. Then the manna ceased on the following day when they had eaten some of the yield of the land, and manna did not occur anymore for the sons of Israel, and they began to eat some of the produce of the land of Canaan in that year. It was about when Joshua happened to be by Jericho that he proceeded to raise his eyes and look, and there there was a man standing in front of him with his drawn sword in his hand. So Joshua walked up to him and said to him--"Are you for us or for our adversaries?" To this he said--"No, but I--as prince of the army of God I have now come." With that Joshua fell on his face to the
earth and prostrated (lay down with face to the ground and arms stretched out by sides and legs stretched out) himself and said to him--"What is my lord saying to his servant?" In turn the prince of the army of God said to Joshua--"Draw your sandals from off your feet, because the place on which you are standing is holy" At once Joshua did so. 6 Now Jericho was tightly shut up because of the sons of Israel, no one going out and no one entering. God went on to say to Joshua--"See, I have given Jericho and its king, the valiant (courageous) mighty men, into your hand. All you men of war must march round the city, going round the city once. That is the way you should do for 6 days. 7 priests should carry 7 rams horns, before the Ark, and march round the city 7 times, and the priests should blow the horns. It must occur that when they sound with the horn of the ram, when you hear the sound of the horn, all the people should shout a great war cry, and the wall of the city must fall down flat, and the people must go up, each one straight before him." Accordingly Joshua the son of Nun called the priests and said to them--"Take up the ark of the covenant, and 7 priests should carry 7 rams' horns before the ark of Jehovah." He went on to say to the people--"Pass on and march round the city, and the war-equipped force should pass on ahead of the ark of Jehovah." So it came about just as Joshua said to the people, and 7 priests carrying 7 rams horns before Jehovah passed on and blew the horns, and the ark of the covenant of God was following them. The war-equipped force was going ahead of the priests blowing the horns, while the rear guard was following the Ark with continual blowing on the horns. Now Joshua had commanded the people, said--"You must neither shout nor let your voices be heard, and no word should come out of your mouths until the day when I say to you, 'Shout.! Then you must shout." He had the ark of God go marching round the city, going round ones, after which they went to the camp and stayed overnight in the camp. Then Joshua got up early in the morning, and the priests went carrying the ark of God, and 7 priests carrying rams' horns before the ark of God were walking, continually blowing the horns, and the war equipped force was walking ahead of them, while the rear guard was following the ark of God with a continual blowing on the horns. They went marching round the city on the 2nd day once, after which they returned to the camp. That was the way they did for 6 days. It was about on the 7th day that they proceeded to get up early, as soon as the dawn ascended, and they went marching round the city in this manner 7 times. Just on that day they marched round the city 7 times. It was abut on the 7th time that the priests blew the horns, and Joshua proceeded to say to the people--"Shout, for God has given you the city. And the city must become a thing devoted to destruction, it with everything that is in it belongs to God. Only Rahab the prostitute may keep on living, she and all who are with her in the house, because she did hid messengers whom we sent out.
As for you people, only keep away from the thing devoted to destruction, for fear you may get a desire and you do take some of the thing devoted to destruction and do constitute the camp of Israel a thing devoted to destruction and bring ostracism upon it. But all the silver and the gold and the articles of copper and iron are something holy to God. Into the treasure of God it should go." Then the people shouted, when they proceeded to blow the horns. It was about that as soon as the people heard the sound of the horn and the people began to shout a great war cry, then the wall began to fall down flat. After that the people went up into the city, each one straight before him, and captured the city. They went devoting all that was in the city, from man to woman, from young man to old man and to bull and sheep and ass, to destruction by the edge of the sword. To the 2 men who had done the spying on the land, Joshua said--"Go into the house of the woman, the prostitute, and bring out of there the woman and all who belong to her, just as you have sworn to her." So the young men who had done the spying went in and brought out Rahab and her father and her mother, brothers and all who belonged to her, yes, all her family relationship they brought out, and they proceeded to set them down outside the camp of Israel. They burned the city with fire and everything that was to it. Only silver and gold, and the articles of copper and iron they gave to the treasure of God's house. Rahab the prostitute and the household of her father and all who belonged to her, Joshua saved alive, and she lives in the midst of Israel down to this day, because she hid the messengers whom Joshua sent out to spy on Jericho. Then Joshua had an oath pronounced at that particular time, said--"Cursed may the man be before God who pets up and does build this city, even Jericho. At the forfeit (give up) of his 1stborn let him lay the foundation of it, and at the forfeit of his youngest let him put up its doors." So God proved to be with Joshua, and his fame came to be in all the earth. 7 The sons of Israel went committing an act of unfaithfulness respecting the thing devoted to destruction in that Achan the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took some of the thing devoted to destruction. At this God's anger grew hot against the sons of Israel. Then Joshua sent men out from Jericho to Ai, which is close by Bethaven, to the east of Bethel, and said to them--"Go up and spy on the land." Accordingly the men went up and spied on Ai. After that they returned to Joshua and said to him--"Let about 2,000 men or about 3,000 men go up and strike Ai. Do not weary all the people with going there, for they are few." So about 3,000 men of the people went up there, but they took to flight before the men of Ai. And the men of Ai got to strike down about 36 men of them, and they went pursuing them from before the gate as far as Shebarim and continued striking them down on the descent. Consequently
the heart of the people began to melt and became as water. At this Joshua ripped his mantles and fell upon his face to the earth before the ark of God until the evening, he and the older men of Israel, and they kept putting dust upon their heads. Joshua went on to say--"Alas, Sovereign Lord Jehovah, why did you bring this people all the way across the Jordan, just to give us into the hand of the Amorites for them to destroy us? Only if we had taken it upon ourselves and continued living on the other side of the Jordan! Excuse me, O God, but what can I say after Israel has turned his back before his enemies? The Canaanites and all the people of the land will hear of it, and they will certainly surround us and cut our name off from the earth--and what will you do for your great name?" In turn God said to Joshua--"Get up, you! Why is it that you are falling upon your face? Israel has sinned, and they have also overstepped my covenant that I laid as a command upon them, and they have also taken some of the thing devoted to destruction and have also stolen and also kept it secret, and have also put it among their own articles. The sons of Israel will not be able to rise up against their enemies. The back is what they will turn before their enemies, because they have become a thing devoted to destruction, I shall not prove to be with you again unless you destroy the thing devoted to destruction out of your midst. Get up! Sanctify the people, and you must say--"Sanctify yourselves tomorrow, for this is what God of Israel has said--"A thing devoted in destruction is in your midst, O Israel. You will not be able to rise up against your enemies until you have removed a thing devoted to destruction from your midst. You must present yourselves in the morning, tribe by tribe, it must occur that the tribe that God will pick will come near, family by family, and family that God will pick will come near, household by household, and household that God will pick will come near, able-bodied man by able-bodied man. It must occur that the thing devoted to destruction will be burned by fire, he and all that belongs to him, because he has overstepped the covenant of God, and he has committed a disgraceful folly in Israel."'" Then Joshua rose early in the morning and had Israel come near, tribe by tribe of it, and tribe of Judah got to be picked. Next he had the families of Judah come near and picked family of Zerahites, after which he had the family of Zerahites come near, able-bodied man by able-bodied man, and Zabdi got to be picked, Finally he had his household come near, able-bodied man by able bodied man, and Achan the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, got to be picked. Then Joshua said to Achan --"My son, render please, glory to God of Israel and make confession to him, and tell me please, what have you done? Don't hide it from me." At this Achan answered Joshua and said--"For a fact I -- I have sinned against God of Israel, and this way and that way I have done. When I got to see among the spoil an official garment from Shinar, a good looking one, and 200
shekels (money) of silver and 1 gold bar, 50 shekels being its weight, then I wanted them, and I took them, and look! they are hidden in the earth in the midst of my tent with money underneath it. At once God sent messengers, and they went running to the tent, and, look! it was hidden in his tent with the money underneath it. So they took them from the midst of the tent and brought them to Joshua and all the sons of Israel and poured them out before God. Joshua, and all Israel with him, now took Achan the son of Zerah and the silver and the official garment and the bar of gold and his sons and his daughters and his bull, ass, his flock and his tent and everything that was his and they brought them up to the low plain of Achor. Then Joshua said--"Why have you brought ostracism upon us? God will bring ostracism upon you on this day." With that all Israel went pelting him with stones, after which they burned them with fire. Thus they stoned them with stones. They proceeded to raise up over him a big pile of stones, down to this day. At this God turned away from his hot anger. That is why the name of that place has been called Low Plains of Achor, down to this day. 8 Then God said to Joshua--"Do not be afraid or be terrified. Take with you all the people of war and get up, go up to Ai. See, I have given into your hand the king Ai and his people and his city and his land." You must do to Ai and to its king just as you did to Jericho and its king. Only you people may plunder its spoil and its domestic animals for yourselves. Set an ambush of yours against the city at its rear." Accordingly Joshua and all the people of war rose to go up to Ai, and Joshua proceeded to choose 30,000 men, valiant mighty ones, and to send them off by night. He went on to command them, said--"See, you are lying in ambush against the city to the rear of the city. Don't go very far away from the city, and you must all of you hold yourselves in readiness. As for me and all the people who are with me, we shall go close to the city. And it must occur that, in case they should come out to meet us just as at the 1st, we must then flee before them. They must come out after us until we have drawn them away from the city, for they will say--'They are fleeing before us just as at the first.' We must flee before them. Then you--you will rise up from the ambush, and you must take ownership of the city, and your God will certainly give it into your hands. It must occur that as soon as you have seized the city, you should set the city on fire. According to God's word you should do. See, I have ordered you." After that Joshua sent them out and they marched to the place of ambush and took up quarters between Bethel and Ai to the west of Ai, while Joshua kept lodging on that night in the midst of the people. Then Joshua rose up early in the morning and reviewed the people and went up, he and the older men of Israel, before the people to Ai. All the people of war who were with him went up, that they might approach and get in front of the city, and they proceeded to camp to the north of Ai, with the valley between them and Ai. In the meantime he took about 5,000 men and set them as an ambush between Bethel
and Ai, to the west of the city. So the people set the main camp that was to the north of the city and the extreme rear of it that was to the west of the city, and Joshua proceeded to go during that night into the middle of the low plain. It was about that, as soon as the king of Ai saw it, then the men of the city got in a hurry and rose up early and went out to meet Israel in battle, he and all his people, at the appointed time, before the desert plain. As for him, he did not know that there was an ambush (surprise attack) against him to the rear of the city. When Joshua and all Israel suffered a blow before them, then they took to flight by the way of the wilderness. At that all the people who were in the city were called out to chase after them, and they went chasing after Joshua and got to be drawn away from the city. There was not a man remaining in Ai and Bethel that did not go out after Israel, so that they left the city wide open and went chasing after Israel. God now said to Joshua--"Stretch out the javelin that is in your hand toward Ai, for into your hand I shall give it." Accordingly Joshua stretched out the javelin that was in his hand toward the city. The ambush rose up quickly from its place, and they began to run at the instant that he stretched out his hand, and they proceeded to enter the city and capture it. Then they hurried and set the city on fire. The men of Ai began to turn back and look, and there the smoke of the city ascended (go up) to the heavens, and there proved to be no ability in them to flee this way or that. The people that were fleeing to the wilderness turned up the pursuers. Joshua and all Israel saw that the ambush and captured the city, and that the smoke of the city ascended, and so they turned around and went striking (killing) the men of Ai down. These others came out of the city to meet them, so that they got be in between Israel, these on this side and those on that, and they went striking them down until there did not remain of them either a survivor or an escapee. The king of Ai they caught alive and proceeded to bring him near to Joshua. It was about that while Israel was finishing the killing of all the inhabitants of Ai in the field in the wilderness in which they had pursued them, they kept falling, all of them, by the edge of the sword until they came to their end. After that all Israel returned to Ai and struck it with the edge of the sword. All those who fell on that day, from man to woman, amounted to 12,000, all the people of Ai. Joshua did not draw back his hand with which he stretched out the Javelin until he had devoted all the inhabitants of Ai to destruction. Only the domestic animals and the spoil of that city Israel plundered for themselves, accordingly to God's word that he had laid in command upon Joshua. Then Joshua burned Ai and reduced it to an indefinitely lasting mound, as a desolation down to this day. He hanged the king of Ai upon a stake until the evening time, and as the sun was about to set Joshua gave the command, and then they took his dead body down from the stake and pitched it at the entrance of the gate of the city and raised up a great pile of stones over him, down to this day.
It was then that Joshua proceeded to build an altar to God the God of Israel, in Mount Ebal, just as Moses the servant of God had commanded the sons of Israel, as it is written in the book of the law of Moses--"An altar of whole stones, upon which no iron tool has been wielded", and they went offering up burnt offerings upon it to God and sacrificing communion sacrifices. Then he wrote there upon the stones a copy of the law of Moses that he had written before the sons of Israel. All Israel and their older men, and the officers and their judges were standing on this side and on that side of the Ark in front of the priests, the Levites, carrying the ark of the covenant of God, the alien resident as well as the native, one half of them in front of Mount Gerizim, and the other half of them in front of Mount Ebal, (just as Moses the servant of God had commanded), to bless the people of Israel first at all. After this he read aloud all the words of the law, the blessing and the malediction (curse), according to all that is written in the book of the law. There proved to be not a word of all that Moses had commanded that Joshua did not read aloud in front of all the congregation of Israel, together with the women and the little ones and the alien residents who walked in their midst. 9 It was about that as soon as all the kings who were on the side of the Jordan in the mountainous region and in the Shephelah and along the whole coast of the Great Sea and in front of Lebanon, the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, the Perizzites, Hivites, Jebusites heard of it, they began to assemble themselves all together to make war against Joshua and Israel unanimously. The people of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and Ai. So they, even of their own account acted with shrewdness and went and stocked themselves with provisions and took worn out sacks for their asses, and wine skin-bottles worn out and burst and tied up, and worn out and patched sandals on the feet, and worn out clothes upon themselves, and all the bread of their provisions (supply) proved to be dry and crumby. Then they went to Joshua at the camp at Gilgal, and said to him and the men of Israel--"It is from a distant land that we have come. Now conclude a covenant with us." At this the men of Israel said to the Hivites--"Perhaps it is in our vicinity that you are living. So how could we conclude a covenant with you?" In turn they said to Joshua--"We are your servants." Then Joshua said to them, "Who are you, and where do you come from?" At this they said to him--"It is from a very distant land that your servants have come in regard to the name of your God, because we have heard of his fame and of all that he did to Egypt, and of all that he did to the 2 kings of the Amorites who were on the other side of the Jordan, namely, Sihon the king of Heshbon and Og the king of Bashan, who was in Ashtaroth. Hence our older men and all the people of our land said this to us--"Take provisions in your hands for the journey and to go meet them, and you must say to them,
We are your servants. And now conclude a covenant (end a relationship) with us."' This bread of ours, it was hot when we took it as our provisions (supply) out of our houses on the day of our going out to come here to you, and now, look! it is dry and has become crumby. These are the wine skin bottles that we filled new, and look! they have burst, and these clothes and sandals of ours, they have worn out because of the great length of the journey." Upon that the men took some of their provisions, and at the mouth of God they did not inquire. Joshua went making peace with them, and concluding a covenant with them to let them live, and so the chieftains of the assembly swore to them. It was about that at the end of 3 days, after they had concluded a covenant with them, they got to hear that they were near to them, and it was in their vicinity they were living. Then the sons of Israel left and came to their cities on the 3rd day, and their cities were Gibeon and Chephirah and Beeroth and Kiriathjearim. The sons of Israel did not strike them, because the chieftains of the assembly had sworn to them by God the God of Israel. All the assembly began to murmur against the chieftains. At this all the chieftains said to all the assembly--"We, for our part, have sworn to them by God the God of Israel, and now we are not allowed to hurt them. This is what we shall do to them while letting them live, that no indignation (resentment, anger) may come upon us over the oath that we have sworn to them." So the chieftains said to them--"Let them live and let them become gatherers of wood and drawers of water for all the assembly, just as the chieftains have promised them." Joshua now called them and spoke to them, said--"Why did you trick us, saying, 'We are very far away from you,' whereas you are living in our very midst? Now you are cursed people, and a slave's position and being gathers of wood and drawers of water for the house of my God will never be cut off from you. Then they answered Joshua and said--"It was because your servants were plainly told that your God had ordered Moses his servant to give you all the land and to destroy all the people of the land before you, we became very much afraid for our souls because of you. So we did this thing. Now here we are, in your hand. Just as it is good and right in your eyes to do us, do." And he proceeded to do so to them and to deliver them from the hand of the sons of Israel, and they did not kill them. Accordingly Joshua constituted them on that day gatherers of wood and drawers of water for the assembly and for God's altar, down to this day, at the place that he should choose. 10 It was about that as soon as Adonizedek the king of Jerusalem heard that Joshua had captured Ai and then devoted it to destruction, that just as he had done to Jericho and its king, so he had done to Ai and its king, and that the people of Gibeon had made peace with Israel and were continuing in their midst, he became very much afraid, because Gibeon was a great city, like one of the royal cities, and because it was greater
than Ai, and all its men were mighty ones. Consequently Adonizedek the king of Jerusalem sent to Hoham the king of Hebron and to Piram the king of Jarmuth and to Japhia the king of Lachish and to Debir the king of Eglon, said--'"Come up to me and help me, and let us strike Gibeon, because it has made peace with Joshua and the sons of Israel." At this they gathered together and went on up, 5 kings of the Amorites, the king of Jerusalem, the king of Hebron, the king of Jarmuth, the king of Lachish, the king of Eglon, these and all their camps, and they proceeded to camp against Gibeon and to war against it. Upon that the men of Gibeon sent to Joshua at the camp at Gilgal, said--"Don't let your hand relax from your slaves. Come up to us quickly and do save us and help us, for all the kings of the Amorites living in the mountainous region have collected together against us." So Joshua went on up from Gilgal, he and all the people of war with him and all the valiant mighty men. Then God said to Joshua--"Don't be afraid of them. for into your hand I have given them. Not a man of them will stand against you." Joshua proceeded to come up against them by surprise. All night long he had gone up from Gilgal. God went throwing them into confusion before Israel, and they began to slay (kill) them with a great slaughter at Gibeon and went pursuing them by way of the ascent (rise) of Bethhoron, and slaying them as far as Azekah and Makkedah. It was about that while they were fleeing from before Israel and were on the descent of Bethhoron, God hurled (toss) a great stones from the heavens upon them as far as Azekah, so that they died. There were more who died from the hailstones than those whom the sons of Israel killed with the sword. It was then that Joshua proceeded to speak to God on the day of God's abandoning the Amorites to the sons of Israel, and he went on to say before the eyes of Israel--"Sun," be motionless over Gibeon, And moon, over the low plains of Aijalon." Accordingly the sun kept motionless, and the moon did stand still, until the nation could take vengeance on its enemies. Is it not written in the book Jashar? The sun kept standing still in the middle of the heavens and did not hurry to set for about a whole day. No day has proved to be like that one, either before it or after it, in that God listened of the voice of a man, for God himself was fighting for Israel. After that Joshua and all Israel with him returned to the camp at Gilgal. Meantime these 5 kings fled and went hiding themselves in the cave at Makkedah. Then the report was made to Joshua, said--"The 5 kings have been found hidden in the cave at Makkedah." At that Joshua said--"Roll, great stones up to the mouth of the cave and assign men over it to guard them. As for you men, do not stand still. Chase after your enemies, and you must strike them in the rear. Do not allow them to enter into their cities, for your God has given them into your hands." It was about that as soon as Joshua and the sons of Israel had finished slaying them with a very great slaughter, until these came to their end, and
those who did survive of them escaped and went entering into the fortified (defense walled) cities, all the people then began to return to the camp, to Joshua, at Makkedah in peace. Not a man moved his tongue eagerly against the sons of Israel. Then Joshua said--"Open the mouth of the cave and bring out these 5 kings from the cave to me." At that they did so and brought out to him from the cave these 5 kings, the king of Jerusalem, the king of Hebron, the king of Jarmuth, the king of Lachish, the king of Eglon. It was about that as soon as they had brought out these kings to Joshua, Joshua proceeded to call all the men of Israel and to say to the commanders of the men of war that had gone with him--"Come forward. Place your feet on the back of the necks of these kings." So they came forward and placed their feet on the back of their necks. Joshua went on to say to them--"Don't be afraid or be terrified. Be courageous and strong, for it is like this that God will do to all your enemies against whom you are warring." After that Joshua proceeded to strike them and put them to death and hang them upon live stakes, and they continued hanging upon the stakes until the evening. It was about that at the time of the setting of the sun Joshua commanded, and they went taking them down off the stakes and throwing them into the cave where they had hid themselves. Then they placed big stones at the mouth of the cave--until this very day. Joshua captured Makkedah on that day, and went striking it with the edge of the sword. As for its king, he devoted him and every soul that was in it to destruction. He let no survivor remain. So he did to the king of Makkedah just as he had done to the king of Jericho. Then Joshua and all Israel with him passed on from Makkadek to Libnah and warred against Libnah. Accordingly God gave it also and its king into Israel's hand, and they went striking it and every soul that was in it with the edge of the sword. They did not let a survivor remain in it. So they did to its king just as they had done to the king of Jericho. Next Joshua and all Israel with him passed on from Libnah to Lachish and went camping against it and warring upon it. Accordingly God gave Lachish into Israel's hand so that they captured it on the 2nd day, and they went striking it and every soul that was in it with the edge of the sword, according to all that they had done to Libnah. It was then that Horam the king of Gezer went up to help Lachish. So Joshua struck him and his people until he had let not a survivor of his remain. Then Joshua and all Israel with him passed on from Lachish to Eglon and went camping against it and warring against it. They got to capture it on that day and began to smite it with the edge of the sword, and they devoted every soul that was in it to destruction on that day, according to all that they had done to Lachish. Then Joshua and all Israel with him went up from Eglon to Hebron and began to war against it. They got to capture it and went striking it, and its king and all its towns and every soul that was in it with the edge of the sword. He did not let a survivor remain, according to all that he had done to Eglon. So
he devoted it and every soul that was in it to destruction. Finally Joshua and all Israel with him came back to Debir and began to war against it. He got to capture it, and its king and all its towns, and they went striking them with the edge of the sword and devoting every soul that was in it to destruction. He did not let a survivor remain. Just as he had done to Hebron, so he did to Debir and its king, and just as he had done to Libnah and its king. Joshua proceeded to strike all the land of the mountainous region and the Negeb, and the Shephelah and the slopes and all their kings. He did not let a survivor remain, and everything that breathed he devoted to destruction, just as God the God of Israel had commanded. Joshua went striking them from Kadeshbarnea to Gaza and all the land of Goshen and up to Gibeon. Joshua captured all these kings and their land at one time, because it was God the God of Israel who was fighting for Israel. After that Joshua and all Israel with him returned to the camp at Gilgal. 11 It was about that as soon as Jabin the king of Hazor heard of it, he went sending to Jobab the king of Madon and to the king of Shimron and the king of Achshaph, and to the kings that were to the north in the mountainous region and in the desert plains south of Chinnereth and in the Shephelah and on the mountain ridges of Dor to the west, the Canaanites to the east and the west, and the Amorites and the Hittites and the Perizzites, and Jebusites in the mountainous region and the Hivites at the base of Hermon in the land of Mizpah. So they went out, they and all their camps with them, a people as numerous as the grains of sand that are on the seashore for the masses, and very many horses and war chariots. Then all these kings met together by appointment and came and encamped together at the waters of Merom to fight against Israel. At this God said to Joshua--"Don't be afraid because of them, for tomorrow about this time I am abandoning all of them slain to Israel. Their horses you will hamstring (disable), and their chariots you will burn in the fire. More than that, Joshua turned about at that time, and captured Hazor, and its king he struck down with the sword, because Hazor was before that the head of all these kingdoms. They went striking every every soul that was in it with the edge of the sword, devoting them to destruction. No breathing thing at all was left over, and he burned Hazor in the fire. All the cities of these kings and all their kings Joshua captured and went striking them with the edge of the sword. He
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